Kevin De Bruyne’s first goal of the UEFA Champions League group stage was worth the wait.
The Manchester City star only played in two group stage matches prior to Tuesday’s Round of 16 second leg versus Borussia Monchengladbach, collecting four assists in Man City’s 3-0 defeats of Marseille and Olympiacos.
De Bruyne, 29, was on the bench for the first leg against Gladbach, a 2-0 City win, but started Tuesday as City opened up a 2-0 second-leg lead inside of 18 minutes.
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De Bruyne opened the scoring in a dozen minutes, scoring his sixth goal of the season in all competitions, and the Belgian smashed his effort home with aplomb.
Riyad Mahrez laid off for De Bruyne, who was a couple of yards outside the 18, and the midfielder hammered a shot across the box and into the upper reaches of the goal.
De Bruyne now has six goals and 16 assists in just over 2,200 minutes this season. He had 16 and 23 in more than 3,800 last season.
For his Champions League career, De Bruyne has eight goals and 17 assists for Man City, adding an assist in nine matches between Genk and Chelsea.
Ilkay Gundogan scored in the 18th to increase the aggregate lead to 4-0, but here’s KDB’s laser.
KDB HIT THAT 🚀😳 pic.twitter.com/eWOQAUbqcO
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 16, 2021
