Pep Guardiola has warned Kevin De Bruyne that he faces a fight to win back a regular place in the Manchester City side after a campaign marred by injuries and a coronavirus infection.
The Belgium midfielder returned to action as a substitute against Watford on Saturday but has been told he will start Tuesday’s Champions League match in Leipzig, City’s final fixture in Group A.
The 30-year-old suffered ankle ligament damage at Euro 2020 that prevented him from starting a Premier League game until late September but was just starting to find his form when he tested positive for Covid-19.
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Despite his pedigree, De Bruyne will have to battle for a starting spot at a club where competition for starting places is intense, with Bernardo Silva described by Guardiola as the best player in the Premier League at the moment.
“He has to come back and fight for a position like everyone else,” said Guardiola.
“Kevin doesn’t have to show absolutely anything to me but he has to come back to being himself and show himself he’s back, and do what he has to do. Like he has done the last five or six years, every single three days.
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“Of course the competition is so necessary and he knows it, but Bernardo knows it, and (Ilkay) Gundogan knows it, and all the wingers and strikers know it.”