In Focus: De Bruyne’s declining numbers suggest he needs a Pep talk

Kevin De Bruyne has just two Premier League assists to his name this season — and we are already into March. 

The Belgian maestro racked up 32 across the previous two campaigns but has struggled to stamp his authority on proceedings this term. 

With Manchester City still fighting for silverware on three fronts, they will need their talisman to step up in the coming months. 

Ahead of their FA Cup clash with Peterborough tonight, we take a look at why City's No17 has yet to hit the heights of previous years.

New kids on the block

City spent £100million on Jack Grealish last summer, while boss Pep Guardiola has also been keen to get Phil Foden more involved than ever.

The latter made 17 league starts in 2020-21 and is already on 16 this time around. 

Both Foden and Grealish primarily operate on the left flank. Combine that with left-back Joao Cancelo’s attacking instincts and it is no surprise 40% of City’s play now comes directly down that side of the pitch.

Their overall set-up is geared towards getting the best out of the left-sided players and De Bruyne usually operates on the right. He suffers, to an extent, so that others can flourish.

Injury woes

De Bruyne, 30, is no stranger to injuries. He has missed a significant amount of football since 2018-19 but has always seemed to bounce back quickly. 

Eventually, though, senior players’ bodies get worn down and niggles take longer to recover from — which could be what we are seeing with the Belgium international. 

Guardiola has acknowledged De Bruyne made a disappointing start to the campaign. 

Back in December, he said: "He struggled at the beginning of the season and is now much, much better. 

"The Leeds game [when De Bruyne scored twice in a 7-0 win] was really good and against Leicester, he was really good all game. 

"He is a fighter and a guy who creates goals and assists. He has been injured in some seasons for a long time and we survived."

The numbers do not lie

De Bruyne is creating fewer chances and fewer big chances per 90 minutes when compared with last season. His assists average has also fallen off a cliff. 

But those figures do not necessarily tell the whole story. If we look at the Ghent native’s expected assists (xA), it stands at 0.25 per 90 minutes this term. 

That compares favourably to his record of 0.13 assists per 90, suggesting the finishing of his team-mates has played a significant role in the midfielder’s declining numbers.

Evolution

Perhaps what we are seeing is the evolution of De Bruyne. 

He is still just as involved in matches — in fact, his touches (81.51) and passes attempted (57.61) per 90 are almost identical this season to those he posted in 2020-21.

But the City playmaker is taking fewer shots and attempting fewer dribbles.

We may well be witnessing how De Bruyne prolongs his career — he might move away from being a final-third player and instead become the man playing the pass before the assist. 

He can be just as influential in deeper areas without needing to be at the centre of his team’s attacking play.

Guardiola's conundrum

City often play without a striker — but could this be the root cause of De Bruyne’s struggles? 

For the first time in his career at the Etihad, there is no Sergio Aguero within the squad. 

There is no focal point for De Bruyne to link with, so we are now seeing a different version of the player because he has had to adapt to the current set-up. 

He could well be the man with all of the assists again next season — if City are able to bring in a proper No9 this summer.