Kevin De Bruyne has had his say and ranked Bruno Fernandes, Martin Odegaard and James Maddison in order of who he thinks is the best creative midfielder. The Manchester City man, who's currently out of action for the foreseeable future after a devastating injury on the opening day of the season ruled him out, appeared on Sky Sports Premier League to rank a series of different topics from third to first.
In the video, De Bruyne answers questions on a variety of topics, such as stadium atmosphere, teammate haircuts and future Ballon d'Or winners, but the most interesting topic was when the Belgian had to rank the best creative midfielders, a position he occupies. With the event hosted by Joe Thomlinson of Football Daily, De Bruyne had to choose between Fernandes, Odegaard and Maddison, and it brought about some interesting results. But how did he rank them? Well, it's time to find out.
3 James Maddison
Surprisingly, it didn't take very long for De Bruyne to make his choice, putting Maddison at the very bottom of his ranking pretty quickly. The former Leicester City man has been one of the best attacking midfielders in England for some time, and has hit the ground running at Tottenham Hotspur following his move to Ange Postecoglou's side in the summer. De Bruyne is impressed by the Englishman but wants to see more of him in a big team before he feels comfortable ranking him above the other two midfielders in the list.
Explaining his reasoning, he said: "Maddison is also really creative, but I need to see more of him in a big team, so that can change, so that's why I put [him as] the number three." If his first couple of appearances for Spurs are anything to go by, Maddison is wasting no time proving he can certainly perform for one of England's biggest clubs.
2 Martin Odegaard
After a little more deliberating between the top two, the City star eventually put Odegaard second on his list. The Arsenal man has been an absolute bargain of a buy considering the club spent just £30m on his services a couple of years ago. Last season in particular, he took a real step forward and played a huge role in the Gunners mounting their first real title challenge in quite some time. With 15 goals and eight assists last campaign, he enjoyed the best season of his career, but he is much younger than Fernandes, something De Bruyne took into account.
He explained as much, saying: "I feel Odegaard was amazing last year, but obviously he's younger, so there's a difference in that." That didn't stop him piling the praise on the Norwegian though, saying: "Odegaard is very creative and he's a little more controlled."
1 Bruno Fernandes
It seems De Bruyne is a huge fan of Fernandes, and rightfully so. The Portuguese star has been nothing short of magnificent since joining Manchester United in January 2020. He's largely been the club's most important and influential player over the last three years, even in some of its worst periods. With at least 15 goal contributions in every season he's spent at Old Trafford, there's no denying how impactful Fernandes is offensively for United and there are few creative midfielders who can match his output.
This is something De Bruyne recognises and played a role in his decision. When asked about why he put the United man at number one, the 32-year-old said: "I think he's a creative machine. I think he's always there. He takes a lot of risks also, and I like it. Obviously, he's been doing so well."
He also touched upon how long Fernandes had been churning out high-quality performances in the top flight, saying: "He's also been doing it a long time." All three players are absolutely top-class, though, so there's likely no real wrong or right answer. With De Bruyne's credentials, though, we won't be arguing with him anytime soon.
Kevin De Bruyne is one of the best creative midfielders ever
If there's anyone in the world who's suited to discussing the best creative midfielders in the Premier League, it's the man who is arguably the best of the best, and that is De Bruyne. Through his performances in Germany at VfL Wolfsburg, he earned himself a reputation as one of the brightest young talents in the world, but his move to Man City in 2015 is what helped cement his status as one of the very best midfielders around.
His impact on the Cityzens simply cannot be overstated, and the effect he has had on Pep Guardiola's side has been overwhelming. Year after year, he continues to be on another level to any other midfielder, and whether it's through goals or assists, he is constantly demonstrating his ability to single-handedly change a game.
The arrival of Erling Haaland last season brought the absolute best out of De Bruyne creatively, with the Belgian bagging 31 assists throughout the campaign. Those are just absolutely absurd numbers. Throughout his time in Manchester, the star has won just about everything there is to win at club level. With five Premier Leagues, five League Cups and two FA Cups, he's pretty much completed domestic football in England, but last year finally saw him get his hands on a Champions League as well, with Guardiola's men winning the world's greatest club competition for the first time ever.
VIDEO: De Bruyne ranks Premier League midfielders
He's got plenty of individual accolades to back up his status as one of the greatest midfielders ever as well. Having been named the Manchester City Player of the Year on four separate occasions, he's also been named the Premier League Player of the Year twice. It's a shining indication of the impact he's had on the club over the years, and despite the fact he's now 32 years old, he's yet to show any sign of slowing down any time soon.
His partnership with Haaland could see De Bruyne hold onto his position as the best creative midfielder in England for the foreseeable future, and while he wasn't given the chance to rank himself among Fernandes, Odegaard and Maddison, pretty much anyone else would have put him above them if given the option.