The six Belgians to play for Manchester City - and where they are now?

Manchester City are in Belgium ahead of Tuesday evening’s Champions League group game with Club Brugge.

The Citizens are making their first trip to Jan Breydel Stadium as the two sides meet for their first competitive encounter.

Belgium have supplied City with six first-team players in the modern era, with several still on the books now.

We take a look at the Belgians to have pulled on the colours of City, with some memorable names, while others are a throwback to the less-glamorous era at the Etihad.

Daniel Van Buyten

The first Belgian to play for City in modern times, Daniel Van Buyten made six appearances for City in a short loan spell from Marseille.

In the brief time that the defender spent in Manchester, he earned rave views and drew praise from manager Kevin Keegan, but was consigned to the fact that he would play his football elsewhere. He returned to Marseille but was later sold to Hamburg, where he spent four years. His performances for Hamburg earned him a move to Bayern Munich where he spent eight years.

He made over 250 appearances for German football’s top side, winning four league titles, four German Cups, as well as the Champions League in 2013 and the Club World Cup.

Dedryck Boyata

Boyata’s career began in his homeland, but he was quickly snapped up by City in 2006. He won the FA Youth Cup and as a result was promoted to the senior team. Appearances came in the FA Cup, before making his Premier League debut not long after, while his first senior season also saw him sit as an unused substitute in City’s FA Cup final success.

Unfortunately for Boyata, his long-term future wasn’t really in Manchester, he spent time out on loan with both Bolton Wanderers and then FC Twente. A handful of City appearances came in 2013, mainly in the League Cup, and then a year later he made six appearances, but ultimately was a player who could just not cement his place in the City team.

He departed in 2015, joining Celtic where he spent four years, winning a domestic treble in the 2017/18 season, tallying up four Scottish Premiership trophies as well as two Scottish Cups and two League Cups.

At 30 years old, Boyata is still playing at the highest level of football in Germany, captaining Bundesliga outfit Hertha Berlin. He is also a regular in the Belgium national team, earning 27 appearances for the Red Devils and collected a bronze medal at the 2018 World Cup.

Emile Mpenza

Signed off the back after scoring in a trial match in 2007, Emile Mpenza spent one season at the Etihad during City’s mid-tabled years. Mpenza arrived having excelled in Belgium with two spells at Standard Liege, as well as three years at Schalke. He finished the campaign with three goals, three behind midfielder Joey Barton, who was top scorer that year with a measly six.

The Belgian forward though was a victim of City’s first bout of investment as Sven-Goran Eriksson was appointed. The Swede signed Rolando Baianchi, Valeri Bojinov, Geovanni and Elano. Mpenza made 15 appearances, scoring twice in his second season at the club, but failed to make an ever-lasting impression and he was released.

He later ended up joining Plymouth Argyle but his time there was blighted by injury, ending his time in England. Mpenza moved to Switzerland and rediscovered his goalscoring form, netting 21 goals in 32 matches. A move to Azerbaijan followed and he scored six goals in 31 games, but then his career wound down with Eendracht Aalst in Belgium.

Kevin de Bruyne

Manchester City’s MVP right now, Kevin de Bruyne has been at the club for six years. The 30-year-old was unwanted at Chelsea and failed to make the grade, but he returned to the Premier League with a vengeance. Three of his five full seasons have seen him win Player of the Season at City, as well as being included in the Premier League Team of the Year three times.

In regards to his personal trophy cabinet, he has four Premier League titles, one FA Cup as well as four League Cups. The trophy that alludes him still is the Champions League, which he could have won had he not been forced off with injury in the final earlier this year.

At 30 years old, De Bruyne is contracted to City until 2025 and scored in last weekend’s win over Burnley.

Romeo Lavia

The 17-year-old made his senior debut this season in the 6-1 win over Wyombe Wanderers, playing the entirety of the match.

Lavia has been with the club since the summer of 2020, signing from Anderlecht, who have produced a number of high-profile players. The Brussels-born midfielder already has a winning formula, winning the Premier League 2 and the U18s Premier League in his first season, while winning the EDS Player of the Season award.

His City career is only just beginning but he has so far shown signs of promise - no surprise, given he is learning from the best,

Vincent Kompany

Vincent Kompany needs no introduction. He is so revered by the club he now has a statue outside the ground.

Signing from Hamburg for an undisclosed fee in August 2008, Kompany joined City just when their new era was about to begin. He did so well in his first year that his contract was extended and, in 2011, he won the FA Cup, the club’s first major trophy in 35 years. They later qualified for the Champions League too, and he won multiple Player of the Year awards.

The absence of Carlos Tevez at the start of the 2011/12 season saw Kompany installed as captain and they never looked back. He inspired City to the Premier League title, their first top-flight triumph since 1968. Three further Premier League trophies were to come, as well as a second FA Cup, while there were also four League Cups to lift in his role as captain.

The 35-year-old left in 2019 to later become the head coach of Anderlecht.

Honourable mentions:

Jason Denayer

For four years, Jason Denayer was contracted to Manchester City but he never made a senior appearance.  He was loaned twice to Galatasaray, as well as Celtic and Sunderland, before later being sold to French outfit Lyon. Denayer did once line up against the club which gave him his start to life in professional football, winning 3-1 in the Champions League in August 2020.

Geert De Vlieger

In 2004, goalkeeper Geert De Vlieger joined the Citizens to put pressure on both David James and Nicky Weaver, but unfortunately though his time at the club was blighted from the start. He sustained an achilles tendon injury, missing the entirety of his first season and then did not play in the season, before leaving without making an appearance. He later joined Zulte Waregem and finished his career with Tuesday’s opponents Club Brugge, in 2011.