The Belgian midfielder has now set-up 80 goals in the competition and is level with David Beckham in ninth position after Laporte timed his run to perfection to nod home a typically dangerous free-kick.
De Bruyne broke into the Premier League top 10 last February and, having provided assists at an outstanding rate during his six and half seasons at the Etihad Stadium, looks set to climb higher up the rankings before the end of his career.
The 30-year-old has become a byword for creativity since he arrived at City in the summer of 2015, winning the Premier League playmaker award for the most assists in a season on two occasions.
The first of those was achieved during his hugely impressive 2017-18 season and, since the start of that title-winning campaign, De Bruyne has proven himself to be the most creative player in the division.
And, by some margin.
City’s No.17 has clocked up 52 assists in that time, nine more than Liverpool full-back duo Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson, who are tied for second place.
| Player | Premier League assists since 2017-18 |
| Kevin De Bruyne | 52 |
| Trent Alexander-Arnold | 43 |
| Andy Robertson | 43 |
| Mohamed Salah | 42 |
| Son Heung-min | 35 |
With his trademark teasing crosses from the inside right channel and the accuracy to split defences with slide rule through balls, De Bruyne can rightly claim to be City’s creator-in-chief.
He is the orchestrator of Pep Guardiola’s attack. Joao Cancelo believes his team-mate has the most precise right foot in the squad and there evidence certainly suggests the Portuguese full-back’s assessment is correct.
De Bruyne has created more goalscoring opportunities than anyone else in the Premier League.
The playmaker has fashioned 399 chances in total since August 2017, more than 100 more than nearest rivals Alexander-Arnold and Brighton’s Pascal Groß, who have 295 to their name.
| Player | Premier League chances created (inc. assists) since 2017-18 |
| Kevin De Bruyne | 399 |
| Alexander-Arnold | 295 |
| Groß | 295 |
| Salah | 289 |
| Maddison | 251 |
In fact, even if you exclude assists and set-pieces, De Bruyne still comes out on top for chances created, with his open play tally of 292 exceeding second-placed Salah by 28.
| Player | Premier League chances created from open play since 2017-18 |
| Kevin De Bruyne | 292 |
| Mohamed Salah | 264 |
| Sadio Mane | 233 |
| Raheem Sterling | 230 |
| Bernardo Silva | 206 |
Having signed a two-year contract extension eight months ago, which keeps him at the Club until the summer of 2025, De Bruyne has plenty of time to increase his numbers.
Seven more assists would see him move up a further place in the Premier League’s all-time list at the expense of former City man James Milner and he is 15 shy of breaking into the top five, ahead of Club legend David Silva.
Given his form over the past five seasons, that’s something you certainly wouldn’t bet against.
