Kevin De Bruyne insists there is no rush to sign a new contract with Manchester City. The Belgium midfielder has been in brilliant form in the first two months of the season and delivered another masterful performance as City beat Napoli 2-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday.
De Bruyne’s agent, Patrick De Koster, has said he intends to begin discussions with City over improved terms in the coming months. The outcome for De Bruyne, who is paid a reported £115,000 per week on a contract that runs until 2021, could be a huge increase in wages. De Koster referenced Paris Saint-Germain’s latest big-money signings when he discussed the potential deal that he could seek.
In an interview with CRC Radio in Italy that has been widely reported, De Koster said: “His salary? I cannot say. But if you think what Neymar and Kylian Mbappé are being paid, you can picture.”
Brazil star Neymar, signed for £200.6m from Barcelona in the summer, earns a reported £500,000 per week in the French capital, while Mbappé is on £300,000. None of this, however, is of any immediate concern to De Bruyne.
The 26-year-old said: “My agent went already one time to Txiki [Begiristain, City’s director of football]. Talks are coming. I’m patient anyway, I don’t stress. I think I read something in the press but I have time.”
De Bruyne, who played a lead role in Saturday’s 7-2 thrashing of Stoke, was again heavily influential as City claimed a hard-fought win over the Serie A leaders at the Etihad Stadium. The victory, City’s third in Group F, was set up in a dazzling opening half-hour. Raheem Sterling opened the scoring with his eighth goal of the season after nine minutes and De Bruyne set up Gabriel Jesus for the second soon afterwards. De Bruyne then hit the bar and Jesus was denied a second by Kalidou Koulibaly’s goalline clearance.
The rest of the contest was more evenly fought, with Napoli awarded two penalties. Ederson saved the first from Dries Mertens but Amadou Diawara scored the second. Marek Hamsik had the best of a number of Napoli chances but John Stones managed to block him.
De Bruyne said: “The second half was more difficult. They were playing really good football. In the end it’s a great result for us. We handled it quite well and we’re very happy with the nine points.”
The former Chelsea and Wolfsburg player continues to attract praise for his performances. But he said: “I don’t care. I have to do the things that I do. In football you are going to have highs and lows and you have to live in the middle. I just like to enjoy my football, that’s a big part of me.”
De Bruyne was also involved in a spat at half-time with his team-mates Fernandinho and David Silva, who tried to prevent him speaking to the officials. He said: “It happens. There’s nothing wrong. After one minute, it’s over. At home I get some arguments with my wife! I think it’s normal, it’s necessary.”