Brussels [Belgium], September 5 (ANI): Former Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne made a scathing assessment of Enzo Fernandez as his replacement in the club's midfield, saying that 'he is not anywhere near the level he was' during his playing days with the Premier League giants. 

Fernandez has inked a 125 million pound deal with Manchester City till 2031, the club announced on Tuesday. Fernandez inked the deal with Premier League giants after a successful stint with Chelsea from 2023 to 2026, having won the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup 2025. He started off his playing career in his homeland for Defensa y Justicia and River Plate, where he won four major trophies, before a stint from 2022-23 with Benfica, which saw him win the Primeira Liga.

De Bruyne was one of the most decorated players for Man City, joining the club in 2015 from Wolfsburg for a fee of Pound 54.5 million and winning every piece of top silverware in his 10 years with the club. He won a treble (Premier League, UEFA Champions League, and FA Cup) for the City side back in 2022/23. De Bruyne has won various trophies with Manchester City multiple times, including the Premier League (2017/18, 2018/19, 2020/21, 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24), FA Cup (2018/19, 2022/23), Carabao Cup (2015/16, 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20, 2020/21), and FA Community Shield (2019, 2024). He made 288 appearances for the club, scoring 72 goals. 

The Belgian star provided a very honest and somewhat scathing assessment of former Chelsea star, saying that Enzo being called his successor by his fans is 'a little too much'. 

Speaking in an interview with Nieuwsblad, De Bruyne said, 'Manchester City fans calling Fernandez my successor? Honestly, I think that is a little too much. Enzo is a good player, I am not saying he is not. He has quality, he has potential, and he can become a very important midfielder. But if we're being completely honest, I do not think he is anywhere near the level I was playing at for Manchester City.'

Enzo will be inheriting Kevin's iconic number 17 jersey, which became synonymous with the Belgian star during his stint with the club. The financial scale of the deal has also been very talked about, as Man City matched the British record to get his services, but De Bruyne said that he feels 'people overrate Enzo because of his price tag and achievements with Argentina'. 

'Sometimes I feel people have overrated him because of the price tag and what he has achieved with Argentina. 125 million pounds doesn't automatically make you a world-class midfielder. He still has a lot to prove. If he wants to be my successor, he has to show it on the pitch first. Taking my No. 17 shirt is one thing... replacing Kevin De Bruyne is something completely different,' he signed off. (ANI)