Kevin De Bruyne is without question one of the greatest midfielders the Premier League has ever witnessed.
That being said, we’d find it difficult (not just as biased Liverpool fans but even from a purely objective standpoint) to agree with Jason Cundy’s claim (one Jamie O’Hara branded ‘ridiculous) that the Belgian maestro could ‘go down as possibly the best midfielder this country has ever seen’.
🔥 Jason: “De Bruyne could do down as the #PL’s greatest midfielder.”
😳 Jamie: “Ridiculous!”
🤷♂️ Jason: “Why is it?!”
Can Kevin De Bruyne be remembered as the greatest midfielder to play in the Premier League? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/hWzqAEYrSp
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) September 22, 2022
We really do want to emphasise that the former Chelsea star is a truly special talent, however, we’d strongly argue that former Liverpool captain was a superior midfielder and more deserving of that potential crown.
That’s without throwing names like Frank Lampard and Paul Scholes into the ring.
VOTE for Empire of the Kop as Best Club Content Creator (Premier League) here: Football Content Awards
OR on Twitter with the FCA’s one-click Twitter link with: I am voting for @Empireofthekop in @The_FCAs for #BestClubContentCreator (Premier League)
Stats will inevitably be nudged into the equation in an attempt to prove Cundy’s point – the most notable of which being De Bruyne matching the now Aston Villa boss’ assists tally in 287 fewer games.
Kevin De Bruyne has matched Steven Gerrard's Premier League assists total. 🧠✨
He's played 287 less games than Gerrard. 👀 pic.twitter.com/GLM0phlFJy
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) September 22, 2022
READ MORE: Liverpool might snag £50-60m discount on 2023 transfer target, Reds legend suggests
It’s an admirable achievement, don’t get us wrong, but it ignores a whole swathe of factors in the Champions League winner’s favour.
For one, for good chunks of the Scouser’s career, he was forced to play in considerably poorer teams overall in comparison to the Manchester City star; Steven Gerrard famously never won a Premier League title – De Bruyne has already secured four with the Sky Blues.
There’s so much more to the Englishman’s game than his stats too; the midfielder inspired incredible performances and comebacks from his teammates and would take big games by the scruff of the neck when it was required.
We’ll never know the answer but we can’t help but ask the question as to whether the Belgian would have had the exact same impact in the 2005 Champions League final as the ex-Reds captain.
It’s something to think about.