Jack Grealish had previously said he had wanted to be the man to assist Erling Haaland’s record-breaking Premier League goal.
He fulfilled that ambition in Wednesday’s 3-0 win over West Ham when his superstar teammate lobbed home his 35th league goal of the season. It’s an historic moment that will get replayed for years to come and Grealish etches himself alongside his teammate in immortality.
But the moment also had another poignant element. Kevin De Bruyne has assisted Haaland 11 times across all competitions this season. However, the Belgian has sat out the last two wins over Fulham and West Ham due to a knock - yet Haaland has still managed to score. While his absence was somewhat evident in the 2-1 win at Craven Cottage, City still came up trumps.
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Replacement Julian Alvarez got the winner with a sublime first-half strike that yet again underlined the strength in depth at Pep Guardiola’s disposal. The first 45 minutes against the Hammers was frustrating but by the end, De Bruyne only crossed the minds of City fans when he came onto the pitch to congratulate his colleagues post-match.
Even if Haaland had not scored and grabbed the headlines, the story still would not have been about the playmaker’s absence. It quietly marks a new phase for City and extinguishes the accusation that the Blues look dented without their talisman in the side.
It’s a theory that had been banded about in recent years. While perhaps in formative seasons this was true, City have lost just one of the 24 matches De Bruyne has either missed or remained on the bench for over the past two seasons.
They have won all but one of their 10 games without him this season, the anomaly being a draw with Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. Guardiola is well aware of De Bruyne’s age, his playmaker due to turn 32 next month.
He has already been left out of certain games earlier this year with the boss admitting that he needed to ensure he kept his physical and mental batteries charged for the right moments in the season. The matches against Fulham and West Ham showed that City have shaken off the accusation of De Bruyne leaving a hole in the team when missing.
Of course, City are much better with him in the side, let’s get that clear. But there is only so much energy in the legs during a footballer’s career and time waits for nobody. The exciting thing for City fans is that the next generation are taking hold and filling the gaps that were previously left by De Bruyne’s absence.
Haaland, Alvarez and Foden are all 23 or younger and heading the new attacking wave while Jack Grealish at 27 years old is in his pomp. Despite his experienced play, it’s easy to forget Rodri is 26.
Youngsters Cole Palmer and Rico Lewis are the latest of the new batch of academy products who will only grow under the tutelage of Guardiola. De Bruyne may get another teary rendition of ‘we can never replace him’ when he one day takes his final bow at the Etihad, and that statement would this time be correct.
He will surely go down as the greatest City player of the modern era, which would be confirmed with a Champions League lift. But at some point, a change of the guard is inevitable and perhaps Ilkay Gundogan’s seemingly forthcoming exit will mark the start of that.
Guardiola continues to build a dynasty to last, not just a team for the present so that means the inevitable coming and going of players.
But there is time to go before that yet and City will be in safe hands - there will be no panic as there once might have been. Already, though, the burden on De Bruyne has been well and truly lifted as City continue to prove people wrong.
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