De Bruyne confident of Chelsea future

Genk midfielder Kevin De Bruyne says Chelsea are still very interested in signing him and are planning a future for him.

The Premier League club attempted to buy the 20-year-old at the start of the season, but refused to meet the Belgian team’s asking fee.

However, Chelsea, who played Genk in the Champions League group stage this season, remain keen to strike a deal and the player has suggested he could be sent out on loan elsewhere before moving to Stamford Bridge..

“Chelsea are still interested in signing me and have a plan ready for me,” De Bruyne told Sporza.

“It would be perfect if they’d sent me out on loan to another team first. Something like Thibaut Courtois at Atletico Madrid. He has made the right choice.”

De Bruyne admits he would find it hard to stay at the Belgian champions for another season, but accepts his club’s valuation of him could scupper any possible deal.

“Staying at Genk for another season is not an option for me. Chelsea were very serious last summer, but you never know what team shows an interest this time,” he said.

“Maybe Genk’s asking price is too high. They want to receive as much as they got for Courtois (9 million euros). That’s a lot of money for a player from the Belgium league.”

The midfielder insists the move to Chelsea would be a positive one, even if he ends up playing in the reserve team with Belgian youngster Romelu Lukaku.

“Lukaku’s situation at Chelsea doesn’t scare me,” he said. “He’s training with some of the best players in the world. Even if he doesn’t succeed at Chelsea, he’ll have become a better player.”

“You can join pretty much any team once you’ve played at Chelsea.”