Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire have made an initial approach to sign Manchester City captain Kevin de Bruyne, as per Fabrizio Romano. The Belgian was recently labelled ‘the best passer the Premier League has ever seen’ by Jamie Carragher on Monday Night Football. Chicago Fire Make Approach to Sign Kevin De Bruyne Chicago Fire’s Season So Far After eight games of the 2025 MLS season, the Fire currently sit in eighth place in the MLS Eastern Conference and 15th place in the Supporters Shield. Their attack has been one of the most creative and prolific outfits in the MLS over the first period of the season. They average 1.8 goals per game, the fifth-most in the US top tier, and they have created 26 big chances in their eight league games, a total only bettered by four teams. Their defence, however, has struggled. The former MLS Cup winners have conceded 12 times in the league so far, only four sides in the Eastern Conference have conceded more than them. Whilst some may look towards the start of this campaign indifferently, it represents a marked improvement compared with recent seasons. Last year, the Fire finished rock bottom of the Eastern Conference and in second-last place in the Supporters Shield. In fact, they have only finished in the top 20 of the Supporters Shield twice in the last 10 years, something they hope signing De Bruyne would change. Chicago Fire and Designated Players As per the MLS website, Chicago Fire currently have two Designated Players (DP’s) on their books. DP’s are intended to be the star players at MLS sides as they are exempt from normal salary cap rules. The first of these players is Ivorian winger Jonathan Bamba. The 29-year-old, who has won Ligue 1 with LOSC Lille, joined the Fire ahead of this season and has scored one goal and made three assists in eight appearances. The second designated player is 28-year-old Belgian striker, Hugo Cuypers. Cuypers was one of the most prolific strikers in Europe in the 2022/23 season as he scored a staggering 34 goals in 56 appearances for Gent. He has started this season in fine goalscoring form, netting five times to make him the joint-second-highest goalscorer. Although they have not played with each other at any point, having a Belgian player at the club may prove attractive for De Bruyne. Interestingly, the Fire have one spare DP spot, perhaps indicating they are saving it for a superstar foreign addition, like Manchester City’s captain. What Can De Bruyne Offer? Although Gregg Berhalter has his side firing on all cylinders going forward, De Bruyne would take them to the next level. Even though the Belgian is having his worst Premier League season since returning to England, he has created 3.1 chances per 90 on average, more than 97% of attacking midfielders. The Manchester City “hero” is also as good a presser as ever, winning possession in the final third 1.06 times per 90, more than 88% of top-flight midfielders. These excellent underlying attacking numbers show that De Bruyne could still play at a high level in Europe, never mind the United States.