Ben Foster labelled Manchester City superstar Kevin de Bruyne a ‘sneaky weasel’ after he nearly caught out West Ham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola.
In the first half City’s fixture against the Hammers, De Bruyne took a corner and passed it to Jack Grealish, who stood close to the left corner of the 18-yard box.
Grealish took a touch before directly rolling the ball back to De Bruyne, who remained unmarked.
With De Bruyne’s positioning on the field, Areola expected the Belgian maestro to whip in a cross into the middle of the box and positioned himself accordingly.
However, De Bruyne unleashed a vicious first-time effort that looked destined to catch Areola out, only for the Hammers gloveman to deny with him his outstretched right hand.
The City skipper looked on in disbelief at how Areola managed to re-adjust his positioning to make the stop.
Speaking on The Football Fill-In, Foster pointed out that whenever goalkeepers take up a ‘brave’ position, it can often deter players from attempting an audacious move.
However, De Bruyne is not like most.
“He’s a joke, honestly,” Foster said.
“I’m all for being a brave goalkeeper and taking a bit more than what you should to try and pre-empt. Even a lot of players would see you in that brave position, it would change their mind and make them go ultra-safe and not put it anywhere near you.
“But if Kevin De Bruyne sees you in that situation, he goes, ‘Well, I’m going to take the p*** out of you.’ That’s what he does. He’ll try and whip it into the near post.
“He’s so clever with it. So, so clever. Because he doesn’t need much backlift, either. He knows where it (the goal) is. He’s not looking, but you know he’s looking, as well. Such a weasel. Sneaky, sneaky weasel is what he is.”
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De Bruyne ultimately did not register a goal or an assist against West Ham as City emerged 3-1 victors thanks to Erling Haaland‘s second hat-trick of the season.
But the Belgian was on form against Ipswich Town, scoring once and providing an assist in their 4-1 victory.
This season may also prove to be De Bruyne’s last at the Etihad given he is out of contract at the end of the season.
De Bruyne was linked with a move to Saudi Arabia during the off-season but nothing ever materialised.
Speaking to BBC Radio Manchester, the Belgian also revealed he expects to hold talks with City over his future later in the season.
“Once the season goes on, I’m sure there will be conversations to be had with City,” De Bruyne said.
“I just want to feel good, play good football and this will come in the upcoming months. I don’t really feel the rush for the moment.”
The 33-year-old joined City from Wolfsburg in 2015 in a £55m deal and has gone on to become one of the club’s greatest-ever midfielders, with 103 goals and 171 assists from 386 appearances across all competitions.
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