LONDON: Kevin De Bruyne has revealed he was “a bit surprised” to be told his glittering Manchester City career will finish at the end of this season.
De Bruyne recently announced he will leave the Etihad Stadium once the current campaign is over, bringing the curtain down on a memorable era in Manchester for the Belgian midfielder.
The 33-year-old arrived from German club Wolfsburg in 2015 and has been instrumental in City’s incredible success during boss Pep Guardiola’s reign.
De Bruyne has won six Premier League titles, two FA Cups, five League Cups and the 2023 Champions League — which capped an incredible treble-winning season.
Guardiola hinted it was his decision to end De Bruyne’s stay after the playmaker’s struggles with injuries and inconsistent form over the last two seasons.
City have dipped dramatically this term, surrendering their four-year spell as champions and were reduced to focussing on the battle to qualify for the Champions League.
But De Bruyne admitted he was shocked not to receive a new contract offer because he believes he can still shine at the highest level.
“I have not had any offer the whole year, they just took a decision,” he said after City’s 2-0 win at Everton on Saturday.
“Obviously, I was a bit surprised but I just have to accept it. Honestly I still think I can perform at this level like I’m showing but I understand clubs have to make decisions.
“Maybe if the team didn’t struggle and I came back like I did this year and bedded in like normal then maybe they take another decision.”
De Bruyne said he has not made any decisions about his future as he is concentrating on the race to secure a top-five spot to extend City’s run in the Champions League into a 15th successive season.
He has already been linked with moves to Major League Soccer in the United States but he hasn’t ruled out staying in the Premier League or joining a major European club.
“I feel like I still have a lot to give. Obviously I know I’m not 25 any more but I still feel like I can do my job,” he said.
“I’m open for anything. I have to look at the whole picture. I’m looking at sporting, family, everything together, what makes the most sense for me and my family.
“I like to compete. That’s what I feel so I can’t say that I want to quit because I still feel that whenever I’m in training I want to beat the guys.
“I feel like I’m doing really well and that’s why I’ve also played a lot lately.”
De Bruyne applauded off at Goodison Park after Saturday’s win, with his performance a bright spot in another spluttering City display.
“It’s something really rare to come out and get an applause from another team so I just want to say thank you to them. I think they appreciate the way that I play,” he said.
De Bruyne ‘surprised’ over Man City exit
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De Bruyne ‘surprised’ over Man City exit

- Kevin De Bruyne has revealed he was “a bit surprised” to be told his glittering Manchester City career will finish at the end of this season
Trent Alexander-Arnold to leave Liverpool
- Born in Liverpool, Alexander-Arnold rose through the youth ranks to become one of the best right backs in the world
Born in Liverpool, Alexander-Arnold rose through the youth ranks to become one of the best right backs in the world, winning two Premier League titles, the Champions League and the Club World Cup with the English team.
“This club has been my whole life – my whole world — for 20 years,” Alexander-Arnold said in his statement. “From the Academy right through until now, the support and love I have felt from everyone inside and outside of the club will stay with me forever. I will forever be in debt to you all.
“But, I have never known anything else and this decision is about experiencing a new challenge, taking myself out of my comfort zone and pushing myself both professionally and personally.”
The 26-year-old England international frequently played in a hybrid midfield role for Liverpool in recent seasons, operating as a full back when out of possession but moving into midfield during attacks.
Dubai Basketball end regular season with dramatic comeback victory

- 79-75 triumph was 13th consecutive win, sees them in dominant form ahead of playoffs
DUBAI: Dubai Basketball cemented their form ahead of the playoffs with a monumental 13th consecutive victory, overcoming ABA League regular season leaders Buducnost VOLI in another decisive final quarter at home to triumph 79-75.
The Montenegrin side arrived in Dubai as the league’s toughest challenge but the hosts delivered under pressure as they continued their historic streak before turning their sights to the playoffs which begin on Sunday, May 11.
Head coach Jurica Golemac said: “It was like a final. Congratulations to the players and congratulations to the fans. The focus was unbelievable in the second half — we allowed only 27 points. We controlled most of it and truly deserved this win.”
The game’s most electric moment came in the final quarter. With just minutes on the clock and the outcome still in the balance, Awudu Abass intercepted a crucial play and charged through the Buducnost defence for a sensational fast-break dunk, giving Dubai a five-point advantage in front of a 4,500-strong crowd at Coca-Cola Arena.
Dubai Basketball’s fourth-quarter performance pushed their fans into a frenzy as the game was held to just a two-point difference. Showing up when it mattered the most, captain Klemen Prepelic sealed the win with his final-point free throw.
The win secured a top-four finish for Dubai Basketball, which means their playoff campaign will open at home. The team will face Slovenia’s Cedevita Olimpija on Sunday in what will be a historic game for the club.
Describing the team’s fans as their sixth player, Golemac said: “We are calling all the fans to come next week — in seven days — for the first game of the playoffs. We are going to need their support more than ever.”
Ferrari frustration mounts as Hamilton and Leclerc struggle at Miami Grand Prix

- There was little improvement to his performance, and Hamilton was ordered by Ferrari to give up seventh place in Sunday’s race to teammate Charles Leclerc
- Hamilton settled for eighth, his worst finish since he was disqualified from the second race of the season
MIAMI GARDENS: Lewis Hamilton arrived at the Miami Grand Prix admittedly frustrated with his slow start to the Formula 1 season driving for Ferrari.
There was little improvement to his performance, and Hamilton was ordered by Ferrari to give up seventh place in Sunday’s race to teammate Charles Leclerc. Hamilton settled for eighth, his worst finish since he was disqualified from the second race of the season.
Even so, the seven-time F1 champion was upbeat after the race.
“I generally enjoyed the race,” Hamilton said. “I think this weekend, while we were not as quick as we want to be, I feel like I had a better weekend in general. The result might not show it, but I was 12th to seventh.”
Hamilton even briefly thought he’d have a fantastic day when a change to medium tires made him feel “the car really come alive and I felt super optimistic in that moment.”
Even so, Ferrari had nothing for McLaren Racing, which went 1-2 with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.
“I think it wasn’t a good weekend ... we can’t be satisfied with P7 and P8,” said Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur. “You start P8 and P12, it’s almost impossible to fight your way back and challenge the cars ahead. The other thing is that McLaren was probably on another planet. We had enough pace to battle with Red Bull and Mercedes, but not with McLaren.”
Piastri has four victories this year — three in a row — and Norris has one as McLaren has won five of the first six races. Four-time defending F1 champion Max Verstappen has one win, while Ferrari has yet to even challenge with Hamilton and Leclerc.
Compounding problems for Ferrari in Miami was a crash on Saturday when Leclerc lost control of his car as he headed out to the track for the sprint race. He wasn’t able to compete in the sprint and Ferrari had to hustle to even have him ready for qualifying.
Hamilton finished third in the sprint race but then failed to carry the momentum into qualifying. His only complaint after the race, though? Not the team orders to give Leclerc position, but in how slow Ferrari was to communicate the plan.
It seemed that Ferrari told Leclerc before the team told Hamilton, so when Leclerc first attempted the pass, it didn’t work. Once Hamilton got the message, the British driver let Leclerc by on the next lap.
“This is not good team work. That’s all I’m going to say,” Hamilton said on the Ferrari team radio.
After the race, Hamilton said he thought he was actually pretty fast when Ferrari called for the position swap.
“I was clearly quick at that moment and I didn’t think the decision came quick enough,” Hamilton said. “And then for sure, in that time, you’re like ‘Come on.’ I have no problems with the team or Charles. I think we can do better, but the car is where we really need to go to work.”
Leclerc said he knows Ferrari’s drama in Miami will make for a compelling controversy in F1, but that the true problem is the car just isn’t good enough.
“We need to do better, that’s for sure. Today was not ideal and was far from maximizing our potential,” he said. “We’ve got to regroup as a team and be better.”
He admitted that like Hamilton, Leclerc is also frustrated by Ferrari’s performance so far this season. His best finish to date was third at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix last month.
“There’s frustration already that you are, I was fighting for P8 and I was not making any gains,” Leclerc said. “I was really struggling with the car, so there’s a frustration of that and then all the rest and it all adds up.”
Pacers shock Cavs, Warriors shoot down Rockets to advance in NBA playoffs

- Buddy Hield — playing in his 11th playoff game — drilled nine three-pointers on 11 attempts on the way to a game-high 33 points
- The Pacers overcame a 33-point performance from Cavs star Donovan Mitchell and 17 turnovers of their own that led to 22 Cleveland points
LOS ANGELES: The Golden State Warriors punched their ticket to the second round of the NBA playoffs on Sunday, shaking off two straight defeats to grab a 103-89 Game 7 victory over the Houston Rockets.
The Warriors were the last team to advance to the conference semifinals, which got under way earlier Sunday with the Indiana Pacers handing the Eastern Conference top seeds Cleveland a 121-112 defeat on their home floor.
On a Warriors team stacked with post-season experience, Buddy Hield — playing in his 11th playoff game — drilled nine three-pointers on 11 attempts on the way to a game-high 33 points.
Stephen Curry scored 14 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter as the Warriors finally frustrated the second-seeded Rockets, who were coming off two dominant victories and had visions of becoming just the 14th team to rally from 3-1 down to win an NBA playoff series.
“A lot of resilience,” Curry said. “Everybody stepping up. Everybody’s been talking about our team the last two games in terms of our execution, our energy, all that.
“We blocked it all out and just understood we had 48 minutes to dig deep. Everybody contributed.
“Buddy Hield was unbelievable,” added Curry after the Warriors lined up a second-round clash with the Minnesota Timberwolves, who ousted LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in five games.
Curry’s first basket was a three-pointer with 33.3sec left in the first half.
But Hield was on fire, making six three-pointers on the way to 22 first-half points and Draymond Green added 10 points to help the Warriors to a 51-39 halftime lead.
They pushed the lead to as many as 15 before the Rockets battled back, cutting their deficit to three.
Amen Thompson scored 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds and Alperen Sengun scored 21 with 14 rebounds for the Rockets, but Houston made just six three-pointers and trailed 70-62 going into the fourth quarter.
That’s when Curry came alive, opening the final frame with five straight points. Jimmy Butler had six points in a 12-0 Warriors run that took their lead to 20 points with 2:31 remaining.
Butler finished with 20 points, and Curry said his arrival from Miami in February was key to Golden State’s late playoff push.
“For us to build chemistry on the fly and build trust on the fly and perform like we did in a game seven, it means the world,” Curry said.
“So mission accomplished — step one.”
In Cleveland, Andrew Nembhard drilled five of Indiana’s 19 three-pointers on the way to a team-high 23 points and Tyrese Haliburton scored 22 points and handed out 13 assists for the Pacers, who had six players score in double figures.
“I thought we did a great job of starting the game the right way,” said Haliburton, who had delivered the game-winner in the 119-118 overtime triumph that clinched the Pacers’ first-round victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Pascal Siakam scored 10 of his 17 points in the first quarter as Indiana took a 36-25 lead.
The Pacers overcame a 33-point performance from Cavs star Donovan Mitchell and 17 turnovers of their own that led to 22 Cleveland points.
The turnovers helped Cleveland claw back from a 12-point deficit early in the third, taking a one-point lead on Evan Mobley’s hook shot with 3:16 left in the period.
Mobley added 20 points and 10 rebounds, but the Cavaliers clearly missed All-Star point guard Darius Garland, who missed a third straight game with a sprained toe.
They couldn’t respond as Indiana put together a 15-4 scoring run to pull away again in the fourth quarter.
“We weathered the storm,” Haliburton said. “We did it by getting stops, getting out running and just playing Pacers basketball.”
Mbappe scores twice and Madrid win again to trail Barcelona by 4 points ahead of ‘clasico’

- It was the fourth straight league win for Madrid, who last Saturday lost the Copa del Rey final to Barcelona and last month was eliminated by Arsenal in the quarterfinals of the Champions League
- The Basque Country derby ended in a 0-0 draw between Athletic Bilbao and host Real Sociedad
MADRID: Real Madrid survived a late scare but kept pace with leader Barcelona again on Sunday, ahead of their Spanish league “clasico” next weekend.
Kylian Mbappe scored in each half as Madrid held on to beat Celta Vigo 3-2 and remain four points behind the Catalan rivals going into next Sunday’s match in Barcelona.
“La Liga is in Barcelona’s hands, but we’ll have more chances if we’re able to win,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “It’s a great opportunity. We’re going to prepare well for Sunday’s game, which I’m not saying will be decisive, but almost.”
Arda Guler also scored for Madrid, who opened a 3-0 lead early in the second half but saw Celta get back into the game toward the end of the match at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.
Celta had a couple of great chances to complete its comeback, including a shot by Pablo Durán that stopped just short of the goal line after a deflection by Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the 78th minute. Courtois had to make a couple of saves near the end to secure the win.
“We did very well for an hour, we could have managed the lead a little better, but in the end it was a nice win,” Ancelotti said.
Barcelona came from behind to defeat last-placed Valladolid 2-1 on Saturday, when coach Hansi Flick rested most of the team’s regular starters ahead of its Champions League semifinal match at Inter Milan on Tuesday. Barcelona and Inter drew 3-3 in the first leg.
Madrid get a scare
Guler put Madrid ahead with a shot into the top corner in the 33rd, and Mbappe scored in the 39th — also finding the top corner — and in a breakaway in the 48th. The France star hadn’t scored in the league since March.
The match appeared under control until Javi Rodríguez pulled the visitors closer in the 69th and Williot Swedberg scored Celta’s second goal in the 76th.
A couple of minutes later, Duran’s shot agonizingly stopped just in front of the goal line after the ball picked up some backspin as it struck Courtois.
“It was a shame,” Celta striker Borja Iglesias said. “We had our chances. That shot by Pablo almost went in. It wasn’t meant to be.”
Celta, which was coming off a 3-0 win over Villarreal, stayed in seventh place.
There were a few jeers from the Bernabeu crowd as Madrid struggled to hold on to its lead late in the game.
‘All the confidence in the world’
It was the fourth straight league win for Madrid, who last Saturday lost the Copa del Rey final to Barcelona and last month was eliminated by Arsenal in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.
“We played the last game (against Barcelona) a week ago. It was a very competitive game and we came close to winning,” Ancelotti said. “We don’t have to invent a lot of things. We’re going to play a serious game. It’s very important. We’re going to play with all the confidence in the world. Despite all the difficulties, we’re there and to be able to fight this match is something nice.”
He said having Mbappe in top form will be key.
“He’s going to be a very important player in this match due to the fact that Barcelona play with a very high line,” Ancelotti said. “His runs in behind are going to be very important and decisive.”
Forward Rodrygo was not included in the squad because of illness.
Basque Country derby draw
The Basque Country derby ended in a 0-0 draw between Athletic Bilbao and host Real Sociedad.
Athletic are three points ahead of fifth-placed Villarreal and six points behind third-placed Atletico Madrid. Athletic was coming off a 3-0 home loss to Manchester United in the first leg of the Europa League semifinals.
Midtable Sociedad is winless in four matches.
Also Sunday, 15th-placed Sevilla drew 2-2 with second-to-last Leganes, while sixth-placed Real Betis beat 14th-placed Espanyol 2-1.