MANCHESTER: The 196th Manchester Derby will be the last for longtime Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne, who announced this week he will be leaving the club at the end of the season.
De Bruyne will compete for the 22nd time in a City shirt against the club’s crosstown rival in a Sunday clash at Manchester United’s Old Trafford. The match also will have European implications for the Cityzens (15-9-6, 51 points).
The 33-year-old Belgian has three goals and six assists against the Red Devils (10-13-7, 37 points) across those previous 21 fixtures, with seven of those goal involvements coming in Premier League meetings.
That record speaks to a greater legacy as a foundational piece of City’s growth into a titan of English and European football. The midfielder played on six of the 10 City sides that have won league titles in club history, 13 of its 25 major domestic honors including the FA Cup and League Cup, and its only UEFA Champions League title-winning team in 2022-23.
“There’s no doubt he’s one of the greatest for sure,” manager Pep Guardiola said Friday. “The consistency in important games and not important games, every three days being there all the time. There’s no doubt.
“His assists, goals, vision in (the) final third is so difficult to replace.”
De Bruyne’s injury problems over the past two seasons are a major reason the club looks set to finally relinquish its four-year hold on the league title. City enter the weekend in fifth, all but mathematically eliminated from the title chase, but only one point back of Chelsea for a top-four finish and another guaranteed Champions League berth.
Similarly, United also have lagged expectations this season and are still mired in 13th place, nowhere close to relegation danger but well outside of contention for Europe.
The Red Devils have had almost no production from their forward. Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes leads the side with eight goals, and among strikers, Ivorian Amad Diallo has been the most proficient with six goals and six assists.
And although manager Ruben Amorim has engineered some promising stretches, including a four-match unbeaten league run prior to Tuesday’s loss to Nottingham Forest, he would trade places with City in a heartbeat.
“I think we have bigger problems than Manchester City,” Amorim said. “They had that run in that moment — but they improved. They can play in different ways, it is really hard to think how they can face us. They have maybe the best coach in the world. They have top players. But I am so focused on my team.”
City’s Kevin De Bruyne set for last clash vs. Manchester United
https://arab.news/8d7c9
City’s Kevin De Bruyne set for last clash vs. Manchester United
- De Bruyne will compete for the 22nd time in a City shirt against the club’s crosstown rival
- The 33-year-old Belgian has three goals and six assists against the Red Devils (10-13-7, 37 points) across those previous 21 fixtures
Inaugural Kidzink Pearl Cup wraps up at Dubai Offshore Club
- Sailors aged 8-18 competed in the Optimist Coached, Optimist, ILCA 4, 29er and RS Feva classes
DUBAI: The inaugural Kidzink Pearl Cup wrapped up in Dubai after welcoming more than 100 youth sailors from 17 countries for one of the Middle East’s first international open youth sailing regattas.
Held from Dec. 15-21 at Dubai Offshore Sailing Club with the support of Dubai Sports Council, the Kidzink Pearl Cup brought together sailors aged 8-18 to compete in the Optimist Coached, Optimist, ILCA 4, 29er and RS Feva classes.
Backed by global educational design company Kidzink as title sponsor and strategic partner, the event combined four days of competitive racing with ideal windy conditions, with three days of Olympic-level coaching delivered by an international coaching team, giving young sailors the chance to train and race in competitive and challenging conditions alongside peers from different countries and sailing cultures.
The young sailors also took part in interactive onshore sessions developed with Kidzink’s research team, with the event putting the focus on leadership, inclusivity and clean-water awareness.
Charlotte Borghesi, founder and general manager of Kidzink, said: “The energy throughout the week was incredible. You could see learning happening in real time, friendships forming on the dock and young sailors growing in confidence every day.
The Kidzink Pearl Cup is about more than racing, it’s about creating an environment where young people feel inspired, supported and excited to learn.”
A two-time world champion sailor herself, Borghesi brings first-hand experience to the event, having made history in 2023 as the first female helmswoman to win the SB20 World Championship, followed by her team’s victory at the SB20 Women’s World Sailing Championship in Singapore in 2025.
Alongside the racing program, sailors took part in Kidzink’s interactive learning sessions. The UAE sessions built on work first piloted at the Kidzink-supported 29er Class European and World Championships earlier this year.
Local talent featured strongly throughout the week, with members of the DOSC racing squad lining up alongside international competitors. Among them were 14-year-old Chloe Montanet and 12-year-old Edward West.
In the Optimist Coached fleet, first place was claimed by Lev Ryashin (RUS), followed by Matteo Bertucci (ITA) in second and Gonzalo Montero (ESP) in third.
In the Optimist class Jean-Luc Herve (UAE) topped the podium, followed by Xuan Ya Tong (KSA) in second, and Miquel Rossello-Collinge (ESP) rounding out the podium.
The ILCA 4 title went to Fynley Britton (GBR), with Indraneel Roy (IND), and Katyayani Kaushik (IND) completing the podium.
In the 29er fleet, Dominic West and Fynley Britton took top honours, followed by Lily Britton and Matteo Gardenghi in second place with Noah Fisk and Alex Simmonds third.
The RS Feva Coached podium consisted of Ameya Rahul Nair and Arya Khanna in first, Miles Wilson-Brown and Noah Kahlon second, and Finlay Henderson and Rayan Abdallah third.
“Our work in sailing reflects our broader mission to design and create educational environments and experiences where young people thrive,” Borghesi added. “The Kidzink Pearl Cup is just the beginning of much more to come.”
