Kevin De Bruyne 'agreed to Bayern Munich switch' before signing for Manchester City from Wolsfburg
Belgian joined City in August 2015 for £54.5m, the second biggest transfer fee in British history
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Kevin De Bruyne ‘reached a personal agreement’ with Bayern Munich before his £54.5m transfer to Manchester City but the deal fell through after the Bavarian giants refused to meet his astronomical valuation.
The 24-year-old left Wolfsburg in late August after City out-manoeuvred Bayern to beguile De Bruyne and secure the deal in time for the British transfer deadline. The former Chelsea player’s agent Patrick De Koster claims he held two meetings with representatives of the Bundesliga club in the summer of 2015.
De Bruyne, a Belgium international with 38 caps for his country, has scored 11 goals in 27 appearances for Manuel Pellegrini’s side this campaign, making eight assists.
But things could have been markedly different had the German club been prepared to offer more than €50m. The fee which City eventually paid is eclipsed only in British records by the £59.7m Manchester United paid Read Madrid for Angel Di Maria in 2014.
De Koster is quoted as saying: “Kevin's heart was beating for the Bundesliga, where he broke through at Bremen and became a star at Wolfsburg.
“I'm convinced he would have played for Bayern if they had been able to pay the asking price. We reached a personal agreement with Bayern after two meetings.
"The deal collapsed on the asking price. I think that Bayern wanted to pay €50m, but not a euro more.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments