London
\nManchester City don\u2019t need to win the Champions League to be judged a success, claims Belgian star Kevin de Bruyne in an interview with the BBC.<\/p>\n
European club football\u2019s most prestigious trophy has proved elusive to City despite the hundreds of millions invested in players since Abu Dhabi United Group bought the club in 2008 with a semi-final appearance in the 2015\/16 season under Manuel Pellegrini their best showing.<\/p>\n
However, De Bruyne whose Champions League hopes were dashed by Premier League rivals Liverpool last season tells the BBC winning the league crown last season probably ranks as a greater achievement than if one were to win the Champions League.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t agree that we have to win the Champions League to be a success,\u201d said De Bruyne, who has been with City since 2015.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a big title to win but in the Champions League you don\u2019t need to have the consistency that you need in the league.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were great for the whole year, maybe a bit less against Liverpool, and so we were out.\u201d<\/p>\n
De Bruyne speaks with even more recent painful experience of disappointment at a major tournament with Belgium beaten by eventual champions France in the World Cup semi-finals.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a different prospect, cup games are different to a league.\u201d De Bruyne, who scored a stunning goal in Belgium\u2019s 2-1 World Cup quarter-final win over Brazil, says he enjoys a professional relationship with City manager Pep Guardiola.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am lucky that I like to play the way already that he implemented so it was an easier transition, more natural.\u201d<\/p>\n
De Bruyne, who unlike his former Genk team-mate Thibaut Courtois did not enjoy a successful time when he joined Chelsea in 2012 and was eventually sold to German outfit VfL Wolfsburg in 2014, concedes levity can be in short supply in Guardiola\u2019s pep talks.<\/p>\n
\u201cPep can be intense,\u201d said the 27-year-old who scored eight goals and provided 16 assists in City\u2019s title win which yielded several records including passing 100 points.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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