Former footballer Joe Cole has gone out on a limb to crown Kevin De Bruyne the greatest midfielder in the history of the Premier League.
Well, it’s not that much of a limb in truth, but they’re big words nonetheless.
The debate surrounding where Kevin De Bruyne ranks among the greatest midfielders the Premier League has ever seen – Scholes, Lampard, Gerrard, Viera and so on – is one that’s been circulating for many years now and it’s quite the honour to even be mentioned in the same breath as these players.
However, a bit of a legend in his own right when it comes to the English top flight, Cole has now claimed that not only does he “stand shoulder to shoulder” with any of these greats but that he’s started to cement his place above them as “the Godfather of attacking midfielders”.
"We're lucky to have him in the Premier League"@rioferdy5 and Joe Cole discuss the brilliance of Kevin De Bruyne and whether he felt any pressure following Phil Foden's recent performances…
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 6, 2024
Joe Cole dubs Kevin De Bruyne ‘the Godfather’ of attacking mids in the Prem.
The 42-year-old went on to say, “I think he sits above everyone, I really do, and I include Frank [Lampard] and [Paul] Scholes and Stevie [Steven Gerrard] and everyone in that”.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I think he’s moving up and they are great players of their time and it’s always difficult to compare eras because the game, the rules change; the pitch has changed, the ball has changed, the training methods – everything changes but he’s certainly the best of this era and he’s just outstanding.”
This comes after De Bruyne was once again instrumental in Manchester City‘s 4-2 win over Crystal Palace, grabbing a brace and assists for Erling Haaland’s 30th goal in all competitions this season against the home side on Saturday.
ADVERTISEMENT
He is by no means the only one to back this claim with Jürgen Klopp recently admitting that De Bruyne is just as good if not better than Gerrard, while the Liverpool and England legend himself went so far as to dub him “the best in the world”.
Even with injury problems here and there, having spent most of this season on the sidelines, the 32-year-old continues to prove that class is permanent; if anything, you could argue he’s looking better than ever — and we don’t just mean the nice new trim.
Having made it 100 goals in blue, as well as 158 assists in just under a decade at the club, manager Pep Guardiola was full of praise for the Belgian, not only labelling both of his finishes “unbelievable” but applauding him on his unwavering quality since arriving at the Etihad.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Ten years in Man City, the numbers, the presence, the consistency has been amazing,” said Pep, adding: “[He’s one] one of the best players in all our history of Man City.”
You can watch the highlights from Man City’s crucial away win in the title race that looks like it’s going to run right down to the wire HERE and as for you trying to nail down the greatest midfielder this league has ever seen, you don’t need to convince us.
Featured Images — TNT Sports/Man City (via Instagram)
Sport
Two Manchester Basketball players have been named in the SLB Team of the Season for 2025/26
Danny Jones
A pair of Manchester Basketball players have been named in the latest SLB Team of the Season for 2025/26.
The most recent UK Super League Basketball (SLB) campaign is set to wrap up this month, with the playoffs taking place down in the capital, but there are other awards to be handed out before then.
It remains to be seen how ‘The Final Four’ phase will play out at The O2 in London on 17 May, but we can definitely take joy in moments like this.
Announced on Thursday, 7 May, Manchester Basketball confirmed that duo Max Jones and Jordan Johnson have joined the rest of the league’s roster of the best players this term.
As detailed on the club website, “Max has averaged 17.4 points in the SLB in 32 games – he’s been a starter for the franchise and was also named in the ENBL All-Star Five in Germany last month.
“Jordan averaged 14.1 points and 5.1 assists in 30 games in the SLB, had a stellar European campaign and hit 30 pts in just over 27 minutes in the SLB Cup Final.”
Commenting on social media, one fan wrote: “Both JJ and PJ have been so great at the PG spot all year. I feel this is a joint award for them both, but they can only fill one spot for the accolade. If we wanna be a serious club to build upon year on year, JJ also needs to be in an MCR jersey next year.
“We absolutely have the pieces to build around. JJ’s nerve is sooooo cool under pressure. You can just tell they wanna loft a meaningful trophy, and it’s gonna happen if we as a club plan and build the way we need to.”
Plenty of supporters have also stressed the importance of making sure that the board tie down the likes of Jones and other big talents this summer; the rest of the Molten All-League Team of the Season for 2025/26 can be found below.
It’s also worth noting that teammate Tim Adetukasi and women’s team star Irene Oboavwoduo have each been named in the SLB’s British Team of the Year in their respective divisions for 2026.
Writing in a club statement reflecting on a great week of recognition for the resurgent club, General Manager Dominique Allen said: “We are really proud to be a club flying the flag for British players.
Both Tim and Irene have made a real impact on and off the court. We’re really happy for both of them that they are getting some well-deserved recognition.”
Well done to all the MCR stars who are helping get the franchise back on its feet following such a major rebrand across the board.
Here’s looking forward to another promising and productive year for Manchester Basketball.
Manchester City win first Women’s Super League title in a decade
Danny Jones
After a decade of hope and hard work, Manchester City have finally won the Women’s Super League once again in a huge moment for the local club.
Lifting not just their first division title in 10 years, but only their second WSL trophy since the modern female football era began in 2010, it felt like only a matter of time to many supporters.
Ending a six-year Chelsea supremacy, this is also manager Andrée Jeglertz’s first at the helm of Man City’s women’s team, who arrived at the club with a strong silverware record at the start of this season.
These were the scenes at home base as one key result sealed their status as champions:
— Manchester City Women (@ManCityWomen) May 6, 2026
City Women secured the WSL title following third-placed Arsenal’s 1-1 draw against Brighton on Wednesday evening.
They even managed to do so with a game to spare and a six-point gap over the west London club, which has won so much over the past few years.
Speaking in an interview with club media after confirmation of the win, captain and Euro 2025-winning Lionesses defender, Alex Greenwood, said: “[It feels] absolutely incredible. “A moment – we as a team, me personally – us as a club has waited so long for”.
“An incredible moment, it’s an incredible feeling. I’m so glad we got to spend this moment together as a group. Just an absolutely incredible feeling.”
With fans watching both at home, along with the first team themselves, the celebrations have already begun as the team shared a look back at how they got here.
You can see the recap posted on social media in full below.
Commenting on his latest accolade, the Swedish head coach added in a full club statement: “There’s never been doubt about the talent in the group, but there is something else about talking about being winners and champions. We started that early, and we believed in that. That’s led us through this year.
“It hasn’t been easy; it’s been hard work every day, but we had a strong belief that we could be sitting here in May and be champions. That is the first thing, and we definitely deserve it.”
Congratulations to the Cityzens on a well-deserved and long-awaited WSL title; could this be the start of another sporting dynasty of dominance over in East Manchester? Only time will tell…
In other news around the Etihad Campus, the women’s, EDS and academy team stadium is also set to host the final of the FA Youth Cup later this month.
Danny Jones -
8th April 2024 
