Following their 1-0 loss to Crystal Palace in the 2025 FA Cup final, Manchester City supporters have made their opinions known on Kevin De Bruyne’s impending departure. Due to Eberechi Eze’s goal with Palace’s opening attack of the match, the Belgian led his team out at Wembley in what ended up being a losing effort.
Even though Pep Guardiola’s team had possession the entire time, they were unable to penetrate the Eagles’ defence because Chris Richards and Dean Henderson made several amazing saves, including stopping Omar Marmoush’s penalty. But although City supporters expressed their opinions on the team’s choice to allow the playmaker’s contract to expire, they focused on De Bruyne’s contribution to the proceedings.
De Bruyne Unable to Inspire City Victory
The Belgian was one of the more creative City players at Wembley
De Bruyne was at the centre of most of what City tried to create at the home of English football, as was to be expected. For his efforts, Sofascore gave him a rating of 7.7, with only Jeremy Doku, Ruben Dias, and Josko Gvardiol receiving statistically higher ratings for the losing team.
The former Chelsea player generated one significant opportunity that was ultimately missed and played four crucial passes. He finished 100% of his dribbles, won six of his 11 duels, and had four attempts on goal, two of which found the net.
However, De Bruyne was incredibly wasteful, finishing only 85% of his passes and losing possession 20 times. This was below what many have come to expect from the great midfielder, who also struggled with long-range passing and crossing, even though it was partly due to his and his team’s late attempts to force an equaliser.
As a result, City supporters are starting to support the club’s decision after having a say in the club icon.
Fans Claim Time is Right For De Bruyne to Go
Several acknowledged De Bruyne’s efforts but suggested it was an end of an era
Several City fans expressed their opinions on social media before and after the game, saying that even if De Bruyne might have been one of the day’s better players, his carelessness in critical situations demonstrated that the team was correct to decide to let him go.
One fan commented, “They were right to move De Bruyne on,” and then added, “Him being our best player still is very bad news.” “Today was like watching Kev’s testimonial,” a second person remarked. Guardiola’s classification as an emotional coach surprised me. However, after these past few weeks, there is no disagreement. Unfathomable,” one person said, while another said: “KDB was probably our strongest offensive threat today, but let’s face it, he threw the ball away far too much in the final twenty-five minutes.
“Probably the one wise move the team has made this season is not to grant him a new contract worth £400k per week. It’s time to move forward with vitality, youth, and new ideas.
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