132 minutes of Premier League football was enough for Jose Mourinho to decide he had no use for Kevin De Bruyne.
De Bruyne played just over two hours worth of action for Chelsea in the 2013/14 season before losing his place. Mourinho didn’t seem to want the Belgian midfielder, and De Bruyne definitely didn’t want to sit on the bench. He left Chelsea for Wolfsburg in January 2014 in a deal worth £18m.
Mourinho didn’t stand in his way, claiming that he sanctioned De Bruyne’s transfer because he was “an upset kid… crying every day that he wanted to leave.” However, the Belgian has had the last laugh.
"The amount of money they're paying for this boy is just absolutely bonkers! He's a good player, but is he a great player?" https://t.co/iAnTRQrV5o
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) April 5, 2018
De Bruyne returned to English football in August 2015, joining Manchester City in a deal worth £55m, and has established himself as one of the best footballers on the planet. On Saturday, he has the opportunity to help his team seal the Premier League title against his old manager.
He has been speaking to the BBC about his relationship with Mourinho ahead of the game between City and Manchester United. Unsurprisingly, De Bruyne and Jose weren’t close at Chelsea – but the midfielder conceded that he prefers to keep his distance from his managers.
He also said that the pair only spoke twice while working together and both conversations were about him potentially leaving the club.
You can watch the clip from The Premier League Show here:
It's fair to say Kevin de Bruyne and Jose Mourinho weren't close.
Watch more on tonight's Premier League Show.
⏰ 22:00 BST
📺 @BBCTwo pic.twitter.com/DFSjmizVMN— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) April 5, 2018
