Cape Town - Manchester
City play-maker Kevin de Bruyne insists it's impossible to compare him
to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo because they fulfill different
roles.
The Belgian midfielder has drawn widespread acclaim with his consistent, high-quality performances for Pep Guardiola's team this season, with some going as far as comparing him to Europe's elite.
De Bruyne has racked up 11 goals and 19 assists across all competitions this season, despite often playing as a deep-lying play-maker, and is considered to be one of the top players in the Premier League, if not the best.
However, the 26-year-old doesn't believe it's realistic to compare him with Messi and Ronaldo, who have scored 35 and 37 goals respectively this season.
De Bruyne told Het Belang van Limburg: "It is impossible to compare me with them. Our positions are completely different.
"They are much higher on the pitch and score ten times more than me.
"If I make 10 in a season, they score 100. But then I have other tasks on the pitch."
Guardiola believes it would be difficult to find another player like De Bruyne. He said, according to Goal: "He is not playing like this in just one game. It’s the whole season - every three days - playing that way.
"The way he’s played it’s difficult to find one [like it] in Europe."