The Belgian midfielder was dissatisfied when he was replaced early in Man City’s 1-1 draw against Liverpool in round 28 of the Premier League on the night of March 10.

At Anfield, John Stones opened the scoring for Man City before Alexis Mac Allister equalized from a penalty. Kevin de Bruyne played excellently in the first half, assisting Stones to score, and he also created many other opportunities. However, the equalizer created psychological momentum in Liverpool’s favor, while Man City lost control of the match.

In the 69th minute, coach Pep Guardiola suddenly took Kevin De Bruyne off to make room for Mateo Kovacic. On the way off the field, the Belgian midfielder clearly expressed his dissatisfaction. When he faced the teacher born in 1971, De Bruyne was angry. He constantly pointed at the field and complained.

De Bruyne continued to complain on the bench, forcing Guardiola to then sit next to him to explain and calm the situation. However, Pep’s words seemed unable to convince the former Wolfsburg star. Speaking after the match, Guardiola explained the tactical substitution: “I like it. If De Bruyne is not happy, that’s fine. But now he is happy. What can I say about De Bruyne? De Bruyne is important and Man City needs him. But in the second half, after conceding a goal, we no longer controlled the game and had to do something to regain balance.”

Watching the match on Sky Sports, MU legend Roy Keane agreed with Guardiola’s strategy, saying: “I think it was the right decision. Kevin was a bit disappointed, but he’s a world-class player. He’s disappointed. Pep encouraged him!

No one wants to leave the field, but Pep’s job is to look at the big picture to bring the best results for his team. They certainly have no problems after this match.”

Before being replaced, De Bruyne played quite well with 1 assist and 3 passes to create opportunities. He only played more than 70 minutes but still received 7.4 points (according to Sofascore), the 2nd highest on the field, only behind John Stones (7.7 points).

This is not the first time De Bruyne expressed his attitude towards Pep Guardiola on the field. However, the Man City captain considers this a normal action. With the class and importance of the Premier League champions’ playing style, De Bruyne has every right to give suggestions to the coaching staff.

Guardiola hugged Jurgen Klopp after the final match in the Premier League. Guardiola and Klopp have clashed 29 times in their careers, the most of any opponent they have ever fought against. Of these, Klopp won 11 times and also defeated Guardiola the most. On the contrary, with 10 wins, Guardiola is also the coach who has defeated Klopp the most.

With the draw result, Man City is currently ranked third in the Premier League with 63 points, one point behind Liverpool and Arsenal. Guardiola and his team will play their next Premier League match against Arsenal at Eithad Stadium on March 31.