Kevin De Bruyne was forced off the pitch during Manchester City's final match in Istanbul on Saturday night. Photo: Getty Images/Richard Sellers
Kevin De Bruyne looked exhausted. Sixty games in 12 months for club and country had pushed his body to breaking point, but pain from a fractured right hamstring and a potential three-month break was, in his opinion, a small price to pay for a medal now. hanging around his neck.
Indeed, the Manchester City and Belgium midfielder joked that the only real discomfort he felt about finally winning the Champions League was knowing that he will soon have to tell about it. his wife, Michelle Lacroix, was always right.
“I don’t know why my wife said last August, ‘You will win the Champions League. I have no idea why, but she always claimed that I would,” de Bruyne explained. “She even said today [before the game], ‘I’m not worried. You will be fine, you will win.” After all, it's a little embarrassing because I have to tell her that she was right! So this is not the best option!”
De Bruyne may be joking now, but after 35 minutes of Saturday's final at the Atatürk Stadium, he was no longer laughing. An injury that he hid from everyone but City's inner circle for two months – which he somehow survived to put on mind-blowing performances against Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Real Madrid – has finally exploded. . Now, for the second time in three seasons, the Belgian has had to come to terms with the fact that another Champions League final has been ruthlessly cut short.
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In a match against Chelsea at Porto two years ago, he left the pitch with a concussion, broken eye socket and nose after stumbling upon Antonio Rudiger's cynical body check. This time, in a match with Inter Milan, he was prevented by an alleged third-degree rupture of his right hamstring.
That he was able to deal with this issue, as well as some personal family issues that were very difficult to deal with for various reasons, speaks volumes for a player whose special gifts become even more powerful when he marries such a struggle. and determination.
“I just try to do what I need to do,” de Bruyne said with typical restraint. “I try to be available to my team and I know that with the type of player that I am, there is sometimes an opportunity, with all the power and the type of runs I make and the intensity with which I play, that I strain my body. line. But it normal. I do everything to win the game. And sometimes it's hard, yes, but I don't think about it that way. I want to be ready for the next game and if I get injured after that, it's okay, I can handle it.
“This week I really felt good, but I was told two months, there is a possibility that I was in danger, but, you know, you accept it.
“I did what I had to do. Of course, I missed some matches, but games like Arsenal, Bayern and Madrid, I managed to do it. Also, I had some personal things that happened to my family and I got over it.
“I struggled for two months, but it was all small breaks. Today my hamstring just ruptured. I give everything for my team and the people in the club know it. I am proud that I managed to do what I did. It’s a pity that today everything turned out the way I did, but we are leaving with the Champions League, so there is nothing wrong with that.”
De Bruyne said he would go through a scan this week and miss Belgium's Euro 2024 qualifiers against Austria on Saturday and Estonia three days later, robbing him of his chance to win his country's 100th cap. If his worst fears come true and he suffers a complete break, he could be out for up to three months, which would see him miss the start of next season, but he's been philosophical about the matter. “I have no idea [how long I will be away],” he said. “I don't know what the plan is. I'll probably do a scan sometime this week. I'm 100 percent out of the national team, I know that, and it's a shame because I would have played my 100th game, but yes, that's what it is.”
De Bruyne finally got the European Cup after City beat Inter Milan. Photo: Reuters/Matthew Childs
Despite being sent off prematurely, De Bruyne was seen in the second half yelling instructions in the shadow of coach Pep Guardiola. “I just wanted to help my team in one way or another,” he said. “I had an injury and I had to come off, so I wanted to help my team in any way possible, and I did what I had to do.”
De Bruyne admitted that he felt both joy and relief . and didn't want to look too far, but instead enjoyed the moment. But he insisted that, despite his long quest to win the Champions League, that achievement alone should not define his career. “All my career I have fought with my team to win this medal,” he said. “But I still don't think it defines my career. I think it helps, but I don't judge myself or my career solely on this game.
“I know who I am as a football player and as a person, and I am happy, proud and satisfied with who I am. . People can talk so much about you, but if you're happy with yourself and doing what you need to do to go and give it your all, you can be proud no matter what… but obviously you want to win.”
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