Kevin De Bruyne, a Premier League star for 10 years, could be set to join Chicago Fire, according to several reports on Thursday.
The 33-year-old Belgian scored 189 goals in 10 seasons with the four-time defending champions, Manchester City. De Bruyne recently announced that he will leave the club when his contract expires at the end of the season.
Kevin De Bruyne ignores an English reporter after Belgium’s shocking defeat against Slovakia.
Chicago Fire desperate to sign Kevin De Bruyne
Fire, who are going through a bad run of form, have the highest priority to sign De Bruyne. D.C. United and NYCFC were the other two teams to inquire about the midfielder. Inter Miami CF previously negotiated with De Bruyne, but their three designated player spots are already filled, including one with Lionel Messi.
The Belgian captain prefers to go to MLS rather than sign a contract to play in Saudi Arabia. In addition, he did not rule out returning to the Premier League or competing in Europe as his next adventure.
“I’m open to everything, to whatever, just because I have to see the big picture,” De Bruyne said. “I’m considering the sporting aspect, the family, everything together, what makes the most sense for me and my family. I don’t know what it is, because it depends on when you talk to people and what they say about projects or something similar. As I said, I still feel I can play at a good level, but then I’ll have to make a decision when I know a little bit more.”
After 10 games, Chicago has a 3-3-4 record with 12 points and sits in 11th place in the Eastern Conference under the direction of former US national team coach Gregg Berhalter. De Bruyne could join compatriot Hugo Cuypers, who is tied for the MLS lead with seven goals, and give the team a dynamic attacking presence.
“I think in an ideal world you could invest in the whole squad and say, ‘OK, we can bring in world-class players in every position,’ but it’s not perfect,” Berhalter said. “There’s a salary cap and a limited number of franchise players. So I think the sensible thing to do is to sign an attacking player.”
The Fire have reached the playoffs only once (2017) in the last 12 seasons.
