Kevin de Bruyne once admitted that he was a boyhood Liverpool fan and idolized Michael Owen. De Bruyne has confirmed he will leave Manchester City at the end of the season.
The Belgian midfielder joined City from Wolfsburg in 2015 and became a club legend, amassing over 400 appearances and winning numerous trophies, including six Premier League titles, a Champions League, and several domestic cups. However, recent fitness issues have limited the Belgium captain's contributions, with just 27 starts in the league since the 2023-24 season began.
Once a key figure under Pep Guardiola, the 33-year-old has started only one of the club's six Premier League games since their defeat to Real Madrid. It's now confirmed that he will leave the club when his contract expires on June 30.
Despite becoming an iconic figure in Manchester, De Bruyne actually grew up supporting the Reds and idolized Owen. “My favourite club is Liverpool and my favourite player is Michael Owen,” an 11-year-old De Bruyne admitted in old video footage whilst he was still at Genk. “And I would love to play there one day.”
While De Bruyne initially admitted his childhood allegiance to Liverpool and his admiration for the former Reds striker, he later reinforced the claim in an interview back in 2019 with Match of the Day magazine.
He said: "I was a Liverpool fan. My family that live in England were all Liverpool supporters so I was, too. I loved Michael Owen because I was really small like him and quick, too. I compared myself to him at the time. I liked [Zinedine] Zidane and Ronaldinho too – those really skilful players."
Despite growing up as a Liverpool supporter, De Bruyne has not shied away from landing a few blows on the Merseyside club throughout his 10 years at Manchester City. He has made 20 career appearances against the Reds in all competitions and across that time has scored four goals and provided nine assists.
The playmaker might take extra pride in knowing he’s earned high praise from his childhood idol. Owen once hailed the Manchester City star as the best passer the Premier League has ever seen—a fitting compliment for a player who grew up admiring the former Liverpool striker.
"De Bruyne, Scholes, Giggs, Beckham would be my order," Owen claimed. "Scholesy had great vision. Not only could he play a ball, but he had great vision. Giggs probably didn’t have the long-range ping in his locker like a Beckham or a Scholes, but had unbelievable vision. Great vision."
