Next in Line: 4. Kevin De Bruyne.

The next candidate in our series about who will be the next world footballer of the year/Ballon D’or was a tough one for me as a Manchester United supporter. However, a player of this quality cannot be ignored. Kevin De Bruyne has had a very successful stint in Germany before returning to the Premier League to become one of the best, if not the best player in the league. The Belgian has been instrumental in Manchester City’s season and is currently leading the Premier League with assists.

De Bruyne was part of City’s Carabao Cup victory against Arsenal on Sunday and will be hoping to finish the season strongly and to add a Premier League winners medal and a Champions League winners medal to his collection. The City midfielder is well on his way to be the Premier League’s player of the season and has constantly provided an attacking threat with 19 assists and 11 goals for his club in all competitions this season. The creative midfielder has the ability to score with both feet and constantly creates big opportunities for his teammates.

With De Bruyne averaging around 83% pass accuracy and creating 93 chances for teammates in the Premier League and Champions League throughout the season his value and ability is unquestionable. De Bruyne’s ability to find his man is almost unrivaled in the Premier League and probably only matched by the very best in Europe.

De Bruyne will be hoping to also have a successful summer with Belgium at the World Cup. As a key member of one of the best squads in international football De Bruyne’s creative ability will be crucial if the Belgian team hopes to be successful and become the first Belgian national team to win the World Cup. The 26-year-old might have been seen as surplus to requirements at Chelsea, but his development will leave the Blues wondering how they could have let such a world class player slip through their fingers.

De Bruyne’s ability to score great goals with both feet and find team mates when it seems near impossible is what makes him one of the world’s best and gives him a shot to be next in line for the world’s greatest individual football prize. If he manages to constantly produce stats similar to the past few seasons he will continue to be a part of the conversation. Personally, I think we are currently only seeing a glimpse of what De Bruyne has to offer and I think he will only get better.