Manuel Pellegrini’s men are the frontrunners to sign the Belgian, although Wolfsburg are hopeful of keeping him for two more years
Manchester City’s chances of landing Wolfsburg star Kevin De Bruyne’s signature this summer were boosted when Bayern Munich press officer Markus Horwick removed his side from the running.
Last season’s Bundesliga Player of the Year has been linked to City all summer – with the Etihad outfit having made a £50 million bid – while German champions Bayern are also believed to be in the running.
However, Horwick declared the Bavarians agreed at board level earlier this year that they have no intention of pursuing the Belgian this summer.
“We definitely won’t do anything about signing De Bruyne,” he told SID. “The board already decided this a long time ago.”
His statements pave the way for City to secure their target, though Wolfsburg sporting director Klaus Allofs earlier insisted the club are working to keep their talisman and hold off advances from the Premier League outfit.
“I believe that he could feel at home in Wolfsburg for another one or two years,” the official told Sport 1.
Nevertheless, Allofs also admitted it is not in the German club’s interest to turn away offers of a certain size: “I want to emphasise that we are making an effort to convince him to stay, but we consider everything should there be serious offers.
“We’ll discuss it and make a decision.”
Head coach Dieter Hecking had suggested the rumours are affecting the 24-year-old, but he nevertheless insists keeping him for 2015-16 is part of the club’s plan.
“We are still doing all we can,” he told Kicker. “We want Kevin to stay. That’s our main priority.”
De Bruyne was signed from Chelsea for €25m in January 2014 and inspired Wolfsburg to second in the Bundesliga and victory in the DFB-Pokal last season.
The playmaker has a contract at Wolfsburg until June 2019.