Kevin de Bruyne’s intelligent rage transcends space and time | Jonathan Wilson

The Manchester City midfielder was unplayable against Leicester and his smart positioning allowed others to thrive

For Manchester City there is hope, and its name is Kevin. It may take something miraculous for them to close their 11-point gap to the leaders, Liverpool, who have a game in hand, but there is something miraculous about Kevin De Bruyne’s form. His performance against Leicester on Saturday was extraordinary, somehow furious and measured, a blur of activity that was also precisely targeted.

Four shots, two on target. Seven key passes. Two successful dribbles. Two successful crosses. Five tackles made. The numbers give some indication of the scale of his performance but only some. De Bruyne is playing with such energy he seems to defy basic notions of how time and space function. You watch him go to close a defender down, follow the flight of the ball as it’s hacked clear and suddenly there he is underneath it as it comes to earth again, an ability previously thought to be restricted to N’Golo Kanté in his two seasons of title-winning pomp and the Beano character Billy Whizz.

Related: Leicester’s hero is Jonny Evans as Manchester City rediscover potency | Jonathan Liew

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