Update: |Kevin De Bruyne signals Man City farewell intentions as fans send clear message News

Kevin De Bruyne captained Manchester City in his final derby vs Manchester United having announced he will leave the club this summer.

If this is how Kevin De Bruyne wants to go out at Manchester City, we might be in for some fun.

Fun is not a word anyone will associate with this Manchester derby – United and City conjuring up a seriously strong contender for the worst of the lot. It was a sad end to De Bruyne’s connection with a fixture he has dominated over the last decade.

And it is a reflection of City’s decision not to offer him a new contract that he couldn’t turn a game devoid of any quality into one last dance at Old Trafford.

There were glimpses of his brilliance – one or two marauding runs or turns, but not followed by that crucial final ball. One inviting cross to the back post was waiting to be converted, but without Erling Haaland’s long legs, Omar Marmoush wasn’t quite on the same wavelength.

When De Bruyne did shoot, his efforts did not really test Andre Onana. At one point Phil Foden attempted to keep morale and momentum high following a De Bruyne daisy-cutter, however the Belgian wasn’t too interested in engaging.

He just wanted to make his mark one more time, and who can blame him. His legacy won’t be defined by a quiet final derby, or anything he does in the next two months for that matter. If anything, he seemed to want to take it all in, almost on his own among 76,000 others at Old Trafford as he walked out a few paces ahead of his teammates before kick-off.

After the warm-up, he walked back to the dressing room as his teammates sprinted past. Bruno Fernandes stopped his own side’s final drill to shake De Bruyne’s hand but that was the end of the pleasantries. There were the usual chants for De Bruyne from the away end but boos when he took any corner.

Yet the times he went close to the travelling support, it was like a god was strolling towards them. The away end bowed and worshipped the Belgian for one corner in the second half, offering a new level of adoration from supporters who will enjoy this farewell tour between now and May.

On a day where incoming Sporting Director Hugo Viana sat next to the man he is replacing, Txiki Begiristain, the sad truth for all involved is that City must move on from De Bruyne. Just like Guardiola said on Friday.

The full-time pleasantries said quite a lot, too. Plenty of United players went up to De Bruyne, led by Fernandes, and it was all too nice – because nobody on either side did enough to generate any level of animosity towards each other.

The City squad waiting at the away end parted for De Bruyne to take acclaim from the fans, and he seemed embarrassed to accept. That is just his way, but he will be equally hurt at how he is increasingly unable to impact games.

The romantics in the Old Trafford corner know it too – so they will hope De Bruyne carries on trying to simply make the most of his time left in Manchester. It could be a lot of fun.