Blog

After spending nearly a decade at the Etihad, the Belgian midfielder’s current deal at the club is set to expire at the end of the coming campaign.

Mail Sport reported in February that De Bruyne had been earmarked as a top target for the burgeoning Saudi Pro League with officials prepared to step up their efforts to secure the Champions League winner’s signature this summer.

According to a report from journalist Rudy Galetti Al-Ittihad have done just that, with the club said to have agreed terms with De Bruyne over a move.

Negotiations are said to be ongoing between the two clubs over a transfer fee the 33-year-old who arrived in Manchester from Wolfsburg in 2015.

Al-Ittihad are managed by former France and Manchester United defender Laurent Blanc and boast several notable names among their ranks, including N’Golo Kante, Karim Benzema, Fabinho and Jota.

However, despite spending big last summer the Public Investment Fund-owned club were only able to finish fifth in the league more than 40 points behind runaway leaders Al-Hilal.

In an interview with Belgian media last month, De Bruyne admitted the large sums of money on offer would make a potential move to the Middle East hard to turn down in the latter stages of his career.

I still have one year left on my contract, so I have to think about what could happen,’ he told Het Laatste Nieuws.

‘My eldest is now eight years old and knows nothing but England. He also asks how long I will play for City. Once the moment comes, we will have to deal with it in a certain way.

‘At my age you have to be open to everything. You’re talking about incredible amounts of money in what may be the end of my career. Sometimes you have to think about that.’

De Bruyne added: ‘If I play there for two years, I will be able to earn an incredible amount of money. Before that I had to play football for 15 years. I may not even reach that amount yet.

‘Then you have to think about what that could mean next. But at the moment I haven’t had to think about that yet.’