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Kevin De Bruyne is highly regarded as one of the best midfielders in the world.
The 31-year-old Belgian is often described as a complete footballer for his talent all around the field.
In 2018, De Bruyne helped lead his team to a third-place finish before falling to eventual champion France.
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In Belgium’s 2-1 quarterfinal victory over Brazil, De Bruyne scored the second goal for his nation and was named the man of the match.
Ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, here are five interesting things to know about the soccer star:
Kevin De Bruyne began playing soccer at a young age
De Bruyne played his first tournament when he was only six years old.
He began his career then at KVE Drongen in 1997 and played there for two years before joining Gent in 1999.
Kevin De Bruyne left home when he was 14 and lived with a host family
De Bruyne made the move away from home so he could play with the Belgian football club K.R.C. Genk.
He went on to make his professional debut in 2008 with Genk and later spent time with Chelsea, Werder Bremen and VfL Wolfsburg.
Kevin De Bruyne is married with children
De Bruyne started dating Belgian Michele Lacroix in 2014, and the couple got married in 2017.
The two met when Lacroix liked one of De Bruyne’s tweets during his 2012-13 season with Werder Bremen.
They have three children together — two sons and one daughter.
Kevin De Bruyne helped Belgium place third at the 2018 World Cup
De Bruyne made his debut on the Belgium national football team in 2010 and helped lead the team to a 3rd place finish in the 2018 World Cup.
En route, Belgium defeated Panama and Brazil before falling to France.
Belgium then defeated England in the third place playoff.
Manchester City signed Kevin De Bruyne in 2015
In 2015, Manchester City signed Kevin De Bruyne for six years for a club-record fee of 74 million euros.
The four-time Manchester City Player of the Year has won four Premier League titles, five League Cups and an FA Cup.