The Belgian finished third in the men’s Ballon d’Or, with the illustrious ceremony held in Paris’ Theatre du Chatelet.
This was recognition for the splendid form he’s shown for City, which was rewarded with last season’s Premier League title.
And things have started on a similarly positive note in 2022/23, with Pep Guardiola‘s men second in the table, just four points off leaders Arsenal, with 10 games gone.
We’re also through to the knock-out stages of the Champions League, with entry in the FA Cup and Carabao Cup still to come.
De Bruyne finishes third in 2022 Ballon d’Or prize
De Bruyne is in his element, performing well on the pitch and aiming to lift trophies off it.
Chatting philosophically, the talented playmaker admits life is as good as it gets.
He said: “[I want] to win as many titles as possible and be the best player I can be.
“I am fortunate to have played for 14 years so I have been playing football for a long time and I will be a professional until I decide to stop.
“So I am living the life that I want to live. The dream? I am living it.
“I just have to perform how I am doing.”
Performing how he’s doing is spot on as, despite Sunday’s collective blip against Liverpool - in which we suffered our first defeat of the season - he’s lighting up the Premier League right now.
But, interestingly, he still says he’s his own biggest critic.
City win Club of the Year prize at Ballon d’Or ceremony
De Bruyne has been a shining light for City over the course of seven seasons and is, once again, in a starring role this season.
In that time, he’s won four Premier League titles, five League Cups and an FA Cup.
But he’s aware that even a slight drop in form can bring plenty of scrutiny for any footballer.
However, he stresses that, even in that scenario, no-one would comment more critically than himself.
He said: “You know as a player when you played bad, when you played good, when you played good consistently for seasons.
“The best players are their own critics. The people who criticise you outside are never the same level as you do to yourself.
“Obviously you don’t like it when people talk bad about you but it’s part of life.
“The real top, top players push themselves so high to the limit that it’s almost impossible to have a big criticism of them because they are already before you.”
