European Team of the Season: CM – Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)

One midfielder down, three to go, with Manchester City sensation Kevin De Bruyne next up in the WhoScored.com European team of the season. 

The Belgian was in sensational form for the Premier League champions, with his WhoScored.com rating (7.80), of those to have made more than 25 appearances, the best in England’s top tier this term. De Bruyne was the controlling force in City’s title triumph, with every positive passage of play going through the 26-year-old. 

His return of 106 key passes was second only to Dimitri Payet (121) in Europe’s top five leagues this season, but De Bruyne can lay claim to the fact that he registered more assists (16) than any other player. Having chipped in with eight goals, too, the City ace was the creative heartbeat of Pep Guardiola’s seemingly unstoppable machine. 

It wasn’t just on the ball that De Bruyne excelled either as he won possession in the attacking third more times (34) than any other Premier League player this season that allowed for City to quickly transition from the back to the front foot. This ensured City entered the record books having scored the most goals (106) in a top-flight campaign and became the first team to break the 100-point barrier, with Gabriel Jesus’ late goal against Southampton on the final day of the campaign confirming their place among the Premier League’s greats. 

De Bruyne was rewarded for his efforts with eight WhoScored.com man of the match awards, a return only Eden Hazard and Harry Kane (both 9) bettered in the Premier League this season. City’s creator in chief very much proved he warranted the new six-year deal he penned back in January and he’ll be the star man once more as the Manchester side look to not only successfully defend their Premier League title, but build upon a disappointing Champions League performance that saw them crash out to eventual finalists Liverpool. 

As the sole Premier League representative in WhoScored.com’s European team of the season, De Bruyne is very much deserving of his spot in this XI. He’ll now look to follow that up with a strong showing for Belgium at this summer’s World Cup.