While he accepts the Belgian hasn’t been at his best throughout the campaign, the boss says the 31-year-old has had a major influence on his side in recent weeks.
The four-time Player of the Season is in his eighth year at the Etihad Stadium and been pivotal in many of our 11 major honours in that time.
Now, with three trophies up for grabs in the closing stages of 2022/23, Guardiola believes De Bruyne is peaking at the right time.
“I would love to see Kevin at the same level he had against Leipzig and Burnley and with the national team, it’s the best Kevin for a while,” said Guardiola.
“Hopefully he can maintain it until the end of the season. His mood is really good. When he is hitting this level Kevin is an extraordinary player. During the seasons always you have a little bit up and down, that is normal.
“I know what they can do and all the time I try to do it but they are human beings so sometimes that is not possible.
“What he has done against Leipzig was extraordinary, with Burnley especially in a real tough game against a man-to-man team set up by Vincent Kompany.”
City v Liverpool coverage
We welcome Jurgen Klopp’s sixth-placed Liverpool side to the Etihad Stadium for a 12:30 (UK) kick-off on Saturday 1 April. It’s the first match of our Big City Weekender.
Our Matchday Centre will begin text updates at 10:30 before Matchday Live with Brian Barry-Murphy, Howey and Crowley begins at 11:25 shortly ahead of team news.
The trio will look ahead to the game with the usual mix of fun and analysis before Alistair Mann and Andy Morrison talk you through the action with our live radio commentary.
After the game, our studio will wrap up by reflecting on events on the pitch and looking at what it means for City’s season.
Reaction from Pep Guardiola and his players will be available shortly afterwards and then highlights and a full-match replay (for CITY+ and Recast subscribers) are on mancity.com and our official app in the evening.
