Kevin De Bruyne joins Napoli on free transfer after Man City exit

Kevin De Bruyne has joined Serie A champions Napoli as a free agent, the club announced on Thursday.

Sources told ESPN that De Bruyne was the subject of interest from clubs in the Premier League, Germany and MLS, most notably the Chicago Fire, but opted for Napoli.

The 33-year-old made his final appearance for Manchester City against Fulham at Craven Cottage on the final day of the Premier League season after City opted against extending the Belgium midfielder’s contract.

Napoli announced the signing with an image of De Bruyne sitting on a throne wearing a crown, captioned “King Kev is here,” while President Aurelio De Laurentiis also welcomed the signing.

https://twitter.com/ADeLaurentiis/status/1933169963696640122?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

De Bruyne helped City win six Premier League titles and a Champions League title during his 10-year stint at the Etihad Stadium.

He will link-up with Belgium teammate Romelu Lukaku at the Diego Maradona Stadium with Napoli, who won the Serie A title with a 2-0 win at home to Cagliari on May 23.

City have announced they will build a statue of De Bruyne outside the Etihad and, during his final home match — accompanied by his family — he was feted with a post-game guard of honour from the City players and staff.

Napoli won the Serie A title last season, despite selling Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to Paris Saint-Germain in January, and De Bruyne joins fellow former Premier League players Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour in their midfield.

Information from ESPN’s Mark Ogden contributed to this report.