Chelsea cult hero John Obi Mikel has revealed Kevin De Bruyne was “stroppy” and “moody” during his spell at Chelsea – before he emerged as a top Premier League talent at Manchester City
Kevin De Bruyne was “stroppy” and “moody” during his spell at Chelsea under Jose Mourinho, according to a Blues cult hero.
De Bruyne was labelled as a ‘£50million flop’ when he returned to the Premier League with Manchester City in 2015, following his disastrous Chelsea spell. And John Obi Mikel has now lifted the lid on what went wrong for the Belgian.
Mikel revealed: “Kevin was always a stroppy guy, he was always on his own, he was always moody, he was always grumpy. You could never get anything out of him. But now when I watch him play… what a joy. What a joy to watch.”
Kevin De Bruyne is now one of the best midfielders on the planet (Image: Getty Images)
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Writing about his time at Chelsea in the Players Tribunal, De Bruyne said: “I was a bit naive about the way that you have to handle yourself as a Premier League footballer.
“What I think most fans don’t realise is that when you’re out of favour at a club, you don’t get nearly the same attention during training. At some clubs, it’s like you don’t exist anymore… When I got another chance to play, against Swindon Town in the Cup, I wasn’t in good shape.
“And then that was pretty much it for me. José called me into his office in December, and it was probably the second big life-changing moment for me. He had some papers in front of him, and he said, ‘One assist. Zero goals. Ten recoveries’.”
The Belgian wasn’t the only the man to struggle at the Blues in the early 2010s – then go onto bigger better things – with Mohamed Salah also struggling at Stamford Bridge during the same period.
Arsenal seek swift response to take title fight to Man City
Arsenal seek swift response to take title fight to Man City
City must end Nottingham Forest’s five-month unbeaten run at the City Ground in the league if they are to maintain their momentum towards a fifth title in six seasons.
Liverpool’s trip to Newcastle could have big implications on who finishes in the top four come the end of the season, while there is a huge relegation six-pointer at the bottom as Leeds visit Everton.
AFP Sport looks at some of the key talking points ahead of the weekend’s action.
Arsenal’s unbeaten home record came to end on Wednesday as City stormed the Emirates 3-1 and went top for the first time since November in the process.
After dropping just seven points in their opening 19 league games, Arsenal have let eight slip away in the last three following defeat at Everton and a controversial 1-1 draw with Brentford.
“I have more belief than I had before the game,” said a defiant Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta after losing to City.
“With the performance and the level the team put in, we had the feeling we could beat them. Until the second goal we had them.
“But we gave them three goals and the game at the end. Certain errors at this level, you can’t make. At the same time, the team put the level very high.”
City lead only on goal difference and Arsenal still have a game in hand on their title rivals.
Victory at Villa Park would right the ship for Arteta’s men, but there are fears fatigue and injuries are beginning to hamper a young squad.
Influential midfielder Thomas Partey is expected to miss Saturday’s clash due to a muscle injury, while Gabriel Jesus remains out injured.
Liverpool’s first league victory of 2023 against Everton on Monday night brought the Reds back into contention for a top-four finish.
Jurgen Klopp’s men still have a lot of ground to make up if they are to qualify for the Champions League for a seventh consecutive season.
Liverpool are nine points behind fourth-placed Newcastle but have a game in hand on the Magpies and the chance to cut that gap at St. James’ Park on Saturday.
Newcastle’s only league defeat of the season so far came at Anfield in August.
But five draws in their last six games have slowed their charge towards a place in the Champions League for the first time in 20 years.
An upturn in form for West Ham, Wolves and Leicester means it is increasingly likely that one if not both Leeds and Everton face the drop.
The Toffees were brought back to reality in the Merseyside derby on Monday after shocking Arsenal in Sean Dyche’s first game in charge.
Everton’s struggle for goals will not be helped by the continued absence of Dominic Calvert-Lewin due to a hamstring injury.
“The Arsenal game’s a reminder of the quality that is here,” said Dyche. “Of course the striking department has got less options that you would like in the Premier League, and especially for a club of this size and the expectation of its fans.”
Source: dailystar.co.uk; thenews.com.pk
