EPL legend reveals De Bruyne can match Gerrard with more UCL performance
Premier League legend Jamie Carragher has revealed that Kevin De Bruyne can match Steven Gerrard with more UEFA Champions League performances following his goal against Real Madrid on Tuesday night.
The Cityzen was trailing 1-0 after 36th minutes in the first leg of their semi-final at Santiago Benerbua when Vinicius Junior sent a brilliant strike past Ederson despite Pep Guardiola’s side being dominant up to that point.
However, De Bruyne came to the rescue for Manchester City in the second stanza of the encounter in the Spanish capital after the former Chelsea attacking midfielder delivered a thunderbolt low shot to fly past his Belgium international teammate Thibaut Courtois into the back of the net to make it 1-1, putting the visiting team in a good position for the second leg at the Etihad Stadium next week.
De Bruyne has been compared to some of the best Premier League midfielders of all time, including Gerrard, Paul Scholes, and Frank Lampard after their record in the English topflight stands at an incredible 96 goals and 148 assists in 351 appearances.
The Belgium playmaker has helped Manchester City to win a plethora of domestic trophies during his time in his second spell in England.
But De Bruyne has failed to help Premier League defending champions clinch their first-ever Champions League trophy which is his and the club’s biggest dream to achieve after they fell short in the past couple of seasons.
Carragher revealed during an appearance on CBS Sports by saying De Bruyne must come up with a magical Champions League moment, potentially in the final, to match Gerrard’s stunning legacy. Gerrard put in an unbelievable performance to drag Liverpool to UCL glory in 2005, after the Reds had gone 3-0 down to AC Milan.
“If he could be the man who takes them to the Champions League, the treble, it elevates him,” Carragher said (via This Is Anfield).
“We’re not questioning his ability, but in terms of where we rank players, we always judge players in the biggest moments in the biggest tournaments.”
When asked by fellow pundit Micah Richards if De Bruyne had surpassed Gerrard, Carragher added: “Stevie’s got that Istanbul moment, that’s what I’m talking about.
“It’s one game but it’s that moment that you can’t ever take out of your mind when you think of Steven Gerrard. We still haven’t got that one moment for Kevin De Bruyne at the absolute highest level.
“This season could be the season.”
De Bruyne has been sensational for Manchester City, but as Carragher suggests, he has not quite been on top form in their biggest European matches the Belgian has scored two goals from eight appearances in this season’s Champions League.
De Bruyne has bang 10 goal of the season in all competitions and he has now scored at the Bernabeu three times.
