Jamie Carragher has claimed that Liverpool would win the Premier League if they had just one Manchester City player in their squad.
The champions narrowed the gap on Jurgen Klopp’s table toppers to two points following their 3-1 win at Brentford last night, and while Phil Foden grabbed the headlines with a hat-trick, his teammate Kevin De Bruyne was singled out as the one player who’s made the biggest ‘difference’ to Pep Guardiola’s side.
Since returning from a five-month injury layoff in January, the Belgian has supplied a goal and three assists in three top-flight games; and he recently became the third-highest assists provider in Premier League history, with his tally now standing at 105.
Speaking about the 32-year-old on Sky Sports‘ Monday Night Football, Carragher said: “He’s been the best player in the Premier League for the last four or five years. I think he’s been the difference really for Manchester City when you think of how often they have probably pipped Liverpool in terms of the league title.
“If you put him in a Liverpool shirt, Liverpool would win the league. I think that’s how dominant he is. Kevin De Bruyne is going to go down as an all-time great in the Premier League. He’s in an all-time Premier League XI.
“When you think of the greatest foreign players to play in the Premier League, we always use the same names. You go back to Cantona, Zola, Bergkamp. Those three are absolute legendary figures in the Premier League and at their clubs. He’s better than all three of them.”
It’s hard not to look at De Bruyne and think of just how incredible he could’ve been in Jurgen Klopp’s brilliant Liverpool team of recent years, unpicking opposition defences with his unparalleled passing range.
Alas, he’s been the standout player of an outstanding Man City team since he came to the Etihad Stadium in 2015, so much so that they mightn’t have achieved the same level of success without him.
You can view Carragher’s comments on De Bruyne below, via @SkySportsPL on X (formerly Twitter):
"He's been the best player in the Premier League" 💯@carra23 has high praise for Kevin De Bruyne 🙌 pic.twitter.com/VNCyd3WsZg
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) February 5, 2024