Star Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne has admitted that he may have to look for a new team depending on the results of an appeal to the two-year Champions League ban that his team received for Financial Fair Play violations this season.
City, which has qualified for the competition in each of the past nine seasons, is set to miss out on the next two editions of the world’s premier club soccer competition after UEFA’s ruling. The club, however, is currently in an appeals process and expects the ban to be lifted or reduced.
However, if the two-year ban is upheld, De Bruyne admitted in an interview with Belgian media that he would have to consider going elsewhere to play. According to the midfielder, if the ban only lasted a year, he would be more likely to stay, but a two-year ban would be tough to stomach.
De Bruyne, who is one of the game’s premier midfielders and would certainly have lots of suitors if a transfer was forced, has provided 9 goals and 20 assists in all competitions this season.
City’s ownership will do their best to convince the Belgian star to stay even if the transfer ban is upheld, but they might be out of luck if De Bruyne decides that spending two seasons without playing in the Champions League is something that he wouldn’t accept.
