Kevin De Bruyne comes into the new campaign on the back of a very impressive domestic season with Wolfsburg, and was instrumental in their runners-up finish in the Bundesliga. However, the Belgian international could well be on the move in the very near future, with a handful of some of Europe's biggest teams in a queue to speak with the attacking midfielder.
Could Barcelona be lining up Kevin De Bruyne?
Barcelona are said to be one of a handful of European giants interested in signing Kevin De Bruyne.
Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images
Manchester City have looked the front-runner for a while, but the most recent link has been with Barcelona. Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking has confirmed their interest, along with that of Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. The prospect of De Bruyne strutting his stuff at Camp Nou is an especially intriguing one, but is it a realistic proposition? Let's take a look.
Why it makes sense
Barcelona are one of the biggest teams in Europe and De Bruyne is one of the best players. On that most simplistic of measures, it’s a deal that seems plausible. Wolfsburg are a good team but not a great one, and he’s going to move to a bigger club sooner or later.
More importantly, he's a player that could fit in at Barcelona. With Xavi gone and Andrés Iniesta likely to follow in the near future, Barça's midfield is currently undergoing a significant transformation. Ivan Rakitić and Sergio Busquets are both undroppable, but there are still question marks over the third role in their midfield. Rafinha looks like the real deal but Sergi Roberto and Alen Halilović both still have it all to prove. De Bruyne, on the other hand, would be able to slot in immediately.
Why it doesn’t make sense
Perhaps the biggest reason it isn't likely to happen imminently is because of Barcelona's transfer ban. Sure, that hasn't stopped them shelling out for Aleix Vidal and Arda Turan this window -- they're allowed to buy players, just not register them -- but it'd be understandable if they didn't want to spend any more money on people that can't play until midway through the season.
Another counter argument has been that De Bruyne wouldn’t quite fit in Barcelona’s variant of a midfield trio, as he performs at his best when he can play as a pure attacking midfielder in a 4-2-3-1 rather than one of the shuttling midfielders in a 4-3-3. That may very well be true, but he’s talented enough that he’d be able to adapt. Once upon a time the idea of playing two lightweight playmakers in a midfield three would’ve looked silly, but Xavi and Iniesta won all there is to win at both Barça and Spain ahead of Sergio Busquets. Surely De Bruyne could play alongside Rakitić without an issue.
Finally, if there really are so many good clubs in for De Bruyne, there’s no guarantee that Barcelona will be able to get their man. He may well favor a move to one of Europe’s other giants.
Likelihood it happens
It would probably be surprising if Barcelona hadn’t considered a move for De Bruyne, given his level of performance over the last season. However, it could be tricky for them to complete the deal, particularly with so many clubs in pursuit. Let’s give it a 3/10 chance of happening.
This is a post from our transfer rumors section. For news, analysis and more, check out the main SB Nation Soccer page.
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