Manchester City have signed Belgium midfielder
Kevin de Bruyne from German side Wolfsburg for a
club-record fee.
The 24-year-old has agreed a six-year deal and is
City's fourth high-profile summer arrival after
Raheem Sterling, Fabian Delph and Nicolas
Otamendi.
He joined Wolfsburg in January 2014 for a
reported £16.7m after making three Premier
League appearances for Chelsea.
Wolfsburg won last season's German Cup and
finished second in the Bundesliga.
Chelsea signed the winger from Belgian side Genk
for a fee in the region of £6.7m in January 2012.
English roots
Kevin de Bruyne's mother was born in Ealing, west
London, making him eligible to play for England.
However, he opted for the country of his birth,
making his debut for Belgium in August 2010
while still a teenager.
Why did De Bruyne leave Chelsea?
De Bruyne was at Stamford Bridge for two years,
during which he spent spells on loan at Genk
(where he scored twice in 13 appearances) and
Werder Bremen (10 goals in 33 games).
He started two of the first three league games of
the 2013-14 season, but after that began only
three more matches - all in the League Cup.
Manager Jose Mourinho walked out of a news
conference after being irritated by questions about
the midfielder, who had been left out of the squad
to face Steaua Bucharest in the Champions League.
"He was not selected. It was my decision," said
Mourinho. "Only 11 can play and 18 can be
selected. I try to decide, by what they do on the
pitch, when they play and what they do in training.
"He's not selected because I didn't like the match
he played against Swindon [in the Capital One Cup]
and I didn't like the way he was training."
Having made his international debut in 2010, De
Bruyne became a Belgium regular during
qualification for the 2014 World Cup and with the
tournament in Brazil looming and the midfielder
struggling to start games, national team manager
Marc Wilmots urged him to leave the Blues in
search of first-team football.
After his move to Wolfsburg, De Bruyne told
Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws he had "lost
his joy" at Chelsea and that he asked Mourinho to
let him go.
Most chances created in the top five European
leagues 2014-15
135 - Dimitri Payet, Marseille
112 - Kevin de Bruyne, Wolfsburg
101 - Eden Hazard, Chelsea
96 - Nolito, Celta Vigo
95 - Cesc Fabregas Chelsea
95 - Lionel Messi, Barcelona
How has he trebled his value?
De Bruyne has enhanced his reputation since
leaving Stamford Bridge.
It took De Bruyne 13 games to score his first
Wolfsburg goal, but since then he has netted
regularly, while also laying on even more chances
for others.
He ended 2013-14 with three goals in four games
and last season struck 16 times and made 28
assists as Dieter Hecking's men finished runners-
up in the Bundesliga before then winning
Germany's domestic cup competition.
Only one other player - Dimitri Payet - then of
Marseille, now of West Ham - in the top five
European leagues created more chances than De
Bruyne's 112 last season. Chelsea duo Eden
Hazard and Cesc Fabregas created 101 and 95
respectively.
During his time at Wolfsburg he created 254
goalscoring chances in 73 domestic matches,
resulting in 35 assists.
Where will he fit into City's system?
City have begun this season in superb fashion,
winning all four of their Premier League matches -
including a 3-0 victory over champions Chelsea -
without conceding a goal.
Midfielders David Silva and Yaya Toure have
played a key role in this positive start, while
Raheem Sterling - a £49m signing from Liverpool -
has started all three matches.
During his productive last season, De Bruyne
operated mainly as a number 10, the role occupied
by Silva, although he also spent some time in
Sterling's left-sided role.
De Bruyne has also played on the right of an
attacking three and you would expect the man
most at threat following his arrival is Jesus Navas,
who has looked more effective than last season
but whose end-product pales in comparison to one
of Europe's mos
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