The popularity of 'legendary playmaker' Kevin De Bruyne (34, Manchester City) is soaring. It has been reported that Major League Soccer (MLS) clubs in the United States have begun a recruitment battle to acquire him.

The Athletic reported on the 17th (Korea time), "Four MLS clubs, including Inter Miami, Chicago Fire, New York City FC, and D.C. United, have expressed interest in acquiring De Bruyne. According to several club officials who requested anonymity, the four teams have begun to explore negotiations to bring him to the United States."

De Bruyne recently announced his parting with Manchester City. Through social media on the 4th, he stated, "This season will be the last few months as a Manchester City player. It is not easy to write this, but as a player, you will eventually face this situation. Manchester will always be a name remembered by our family," and announced that he will leave the team once his contract expires.

Born in 1991, De Bruyne is one of the legends who will remain in Premier League history beyond Manchester City. Since he donned the Manchester City jersey in 2015, he has won the Premier League six times, the UEFA Champions League (UCL) once, the FA Cup twice, and the EFL Cup five times, all alongside manager Pep Guardiola.

De Bruyne showcased his ongoing prowess last season as well, recording 6 goals and 18 assists in 26 matches. It was truly a performance befitting the Premier League's top playmaker. For this reason, there were numerous speculations that Manchester City would offer him a contract extension as his contract ends in the summer of 2025.

However, time cannot be defeated. De Bruyne increasingly spent time away due to injuries. Even after returning, he often started on the bench for the sake of managing playing time. Ultimately, De Bruyne decided to end his 10-year journey with Manchester City. The club plans to erect a tribute statue for him at the Etihad Stadium.

The Athletic explained, "At 33 years old, De Bruyne announced that he would leave Manchester City at the end of the season, closing one of the most successful careers in Premier League history. He has lifted 19 trophies during his 10 seasons at Manchester City and recorded 189 goals." Currently, De Bruyne's all-time Manchester City statistics stand at 415 matches, 107 goals, and 177 assists.

Now, De Bruyne is receiving a hot love call from the United States. Among them, Miami, co-owned by David Beckham, has emerged as a strong candidate. There are plans to add De Bruyne to a star-studded lineup that includes Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba.

This is because Miami has acquired De Bruyne's "Discovery Rights." This grants Miami the first opportunity to negotiate if De Bruyne moves to MLS. Initially, De Bruyne's discovery rights were held by the newly established San Diego FC, but they returned to Miami when San Diego relinquished them.

However, other teams also have hope. The Athletic noted, "The discovery rights to De Bruyne held by Miami do not hinder other teams from acquiring him. Given Miami's roster considerations, they will need to acquire De Bruyne at a significantly lower amount than his market value, which is below what other MLS teams would be willing to pay. Thus, other teams will not need to pay Miami an expense for his discovery rights."

Miami already has so many star players that adding De Bruyne would make it difficult to comply with MLS's strict salary cap regime. De Bruyne is reportedly earning about $25 million (approximately 36.3 billion won) annually at Manchester City. This amount is even higher than Lionel Messi's $20 million (approximately 28.7 billion won), which is at the top level in MLS.

Currently, Miami's Designated Player (DP) slots are also fully occupied. According to MLS regulations, a club can register up to three players as designated players and exceed the salary cap. However, Miami has already filled all three spots with Messi, Busquets, and Alba.

Of course, it is not impossible. Miami might utilize "Targeted Allocation Money (TAM)," a method in which the club buys the salary cap of a star player to bring De Bruyne in and then convert him to a DP in the following season. In 2018, LA Galaxy acquired Zlatan Ibrahimović in a similar manner, and Miami also brought in Messi and Alba this way.

Chicago is also one of the strong candidates for De Bruyne's destination. The Athletic stated, "Chicago is being restructured under former U.S. national team coach Gregg Berhalter. De Bruyne could make this team a strong championship contender."

The media added, "Chicago has a history of acquiring various star players. Ballon d'Or winners Hristo Stoichkov, Mexican legend Cuauhtémoc Blanco, and Bastian Schweinsteiger have all played as starters for Chicago."

European football transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano also reported that Chicago is eager to acquire De Bruyne. He said, "Chicago wants to bring De Bruyne in as a free agent. He will evaluate all options in the coming days and weeks. However, Chicago is currently showing strong interest in the project to bring him in. A transaction has begun."

[Photo] Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City, Score 365, Sports Kida social media.

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