Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne 'prefers MLS move over Saudi Arabia'

The 32-year-old is the Citizens' longest-serving player within Pep Guardiola's current squad and has established legendary status during a memorable eight-and-a-half years at the Etihad Stadium.

De Bruyne, widely regarded as one of the best midfielders in world football, has notched up an impressive 98 goals and 161 assists in 367 appearances for Man City across all competitions and has won a total of 14 trophies, including five Premier League titles and one Champions League.

The Belgium international, who has recently recovered from a long-term hamstring injury, was a key cog in the Citizens machine that won a historic treble last season and he remains an integral member of Guardiola's squad that is chasing down another three trophies this term.

However, De Bruyne is believed to be facing an uncertain future at the Etihad Stadium, with his current contract due to expire in the summer of 2025.

Recent reports have tipped De Bruyne to potentially become the latest star name to swap European football for the Saudi Pro League.

The Athletic claims that De Bruyne was offered a salary package of around £59.7m to make the switch to the Middle East last year, but the playmaker opted to turn that down in favour of remaining at Man City.

Despite that, the report adds that Saudi Pro League sporting director Michael Emenalo – who helped Chelsea sign De Bruyne from Genk in 2012 – 'has kept the lines of communication open' and hopes that his personal link with the playmaker can persuade him to move to the Gulf state.

However, it is thought that De Bruyne and his family are not