To say that there has been some media attention directed at Kevin De Bruyne would be an understatement. The young Belgian has been hounded by speculation, some of it less friendly than others, as he found out when tricked by journalists into saying that he was staying at Wolfsburg, when the matter has yet to be decided.
Even in his performance against Eintract Frankfurt on the weekend, ‘KDB’ was noticeably not himself. Rumours about acquisitions of former AC Milan striker; Alexander Pato, and Napoli midfielder Dries Mertens both hint that perhaps a departure is scheduled from the Wolfsburg midfield.
The viewpoint of every Wolves fan, and indeed most fans around the world is that Kevin should remain at the the club, who have secured Champions League football for another year, further developing himself before seeking a big money move. But if he were to depart, given the significant offer on the table, an alleged £240,000 per week deal at Manchester City, could Dieter Hecking find someone to climb up into his role?
Taking a look at the players currently at Wolfsburg that might have some potential of filling De Bruyne’s boots, in central-midfield there is Maximillian Arnold, a young superstar who has spent time developing his talent on the luscious plains near the Volkswagen arena. Being touted as the next Mesut Ozil, but with a left foot that rivals Toni Kroos’ cannons for legs, Arnold once kept Diego Ribas out of his usual position at the tender age of 18. The talent is obviously there and given his age, ‘Maxi’ could be one for future transfer speculation. The setback is that while Arnold has shown his expertise at playing a midfield general, out-wide the youngster has yet to show his hand. The Wolves rely heavily on Perisic and Caliguri to fulfil that role when De Bruyne is deployed more centrally.
On the outside, currently Perisic and Caliguri have stiff competition from superstar Andre Schurrle, who is still recovering from some preseason injuries. Although all players have improved, their combined tally of 13 goals and nine assists in the Bundesliga is dwarfed by the 10 goals and 20 assists from De Bruyne. Obviously there is still some work to be done, perhaps most by the world cup winner Schurrle.
Looking back on the acquisition of the former Chelsea winger, and the comparison to De Bruyne’s first six months at Vfl Wolfsburg, it is clear that both players may have taken time to settle back into Bundesliga football. Schurrle played 659 minutes, often as a sub, scoring once and assisting two (220 minutes per scoring involvement), whereas De Bruyne played 1424 minutes, recording three goals and turning provider for six (158 minutes). Given his dramatic rise to fortune in 2014-15, perhaps Schurrle too can settle down and dramatically improve his tally. If he plays anything like he did at last year’s World Cup, it would go a long way to filling the potential hole left in the Wolfsburg squad.
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Another recent signing, Max Kruse, had already shown his quality before in the Bundesliga. 2014-15 saw 11 goals and nine assists from the 27-year old, numbers that are consistent with the years prior. The sheer output of Kruse over several years indicates that he has the capacity to score at will, but also does not mind laying-off the ball for a teammate to take some glory. For the current players Kruse has the greatest potential to play a similar role for Wolfsburg that De Bruyne is currently fulfilling. His performance on the weekend showed he is already settling into his new team.
Only time will tell if any of these players will be able to fill De Bruyne’s position at the heart of Wolfsburg, should he indeed make the decision leave. No doubt if good news fills the halls at the Volkswagen Plant of De Bruyne’s desire to remain with the Wolves, the idea of these players being able to develop around him has Bundesliga fans drooling, and Pep Guardiola feeling the heat for once in the title race.
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