Kevin De Bruyne is doing his best to fit his Manchester City work around his family as the lockdown continues. For City’s chief playmaker, that means more time at home in Manchester with his wife Michele and two children Mason and Rome. De Bruyne and the rest of his teammates have been given individual training programmes to keep fit during their time away from the training ground. That does include some virtual group sessions but the players also have more flexibility to complete their exercises than they normally would with no team or tactical meetings to attend.
Kevin De Bruyne said “My day starts mostly between 5.30am and 6am. Mostly me and my wife change these days of who is getting up so mostly at the beginning it is fairly easy, they watch some TV, have some breakfast and now at 9am my oldest son has online lessons for school so he is doing that. We are keeping the boys entertained. When the sun is out, I want them to be out. We bought some toys, we bought a little goal, we made a little playground when I bought the house, so they are lucky enough to have a lot of stuff. We are in a really good situation unlike other people who are in a little house or maybe in an apartment which would be difficult. Our boys inside, we call them two savages; they just destroy the whole house and that’s two little boys I guess. They are doing really well and I enjoyed the connection they have. It has been growing more now because the only ones they have is each other. They have us but I guess children don’t want to be with their parents all the time either. In the afternoon, between 12 and 2, my youngest son mostly still has a nap, so that is the time that I do my fitness work so I try to do that when my wife doesn’t have the two boys. To take two is always too difficult. In the afternoon there is more and more of the same; playing, drawing, whatever they want to do, then bath time, making food, clean the house, doing that sort of stuff and mostly around 7 or 8 with them, then it is mostly time to have a rest. I think a lot of people are the same but we are managing very well. We have found a routine that we are happy with, they feel comfortable with, and I think that is, for all the people, the most difficult task.”
The 28-year-old has been happy to see his two boys grow closer during an unsettling time for everyone, and fits his training around their nap schedules when he can as part of the daily routine in the house.