Kevin De Bruyne’s wife, Michelle, has spoken candidly about the challenges her family has faced in Naples and admitted that they increasingly dream of returning to Belgium.
The Belgian midfielder, 35, joined Napoli in the summer of 2025 after bringing an illustrious decade-long spell at Manchester City to an end.
His first season in Italy proved difficult, however, with fitness problems limiting his impact and tensions reportedly developing with then-manager Antonio Conte.
The club’s fortunes have not improved significantly under current boss Max Allegri. Napoli are sitting 10th in Serie A, while reports earlier this season claimed De Bruyne had been involved in a dressing-room confrontation with some of his team-mates.
In an interview with Belgian magazine NINA in September, Michelle, whom De Bruyne married in 2017, discussed the strain the move has placed on their family.
‘Naturally, we talk about the future together,’ she said. ‘More and more often, we say to one another: “We will live here in Limburg. The sooner we can return, the better”.’
Kevin De Bruyne’s wife Michelle has described the difficulties her family has experienced in Naples
De Bruyne joined Napoli in 2025 after a remarkable 10-year career with Manchester City
Limburg is a province in Belgium. While Michelle said Naples offered attractive weather, excellent food and beautiful surroundings, she also explained how life in the Italian city had affected De Bruyne and their three children, Mason, Rome and Suri.
‘Kevin has a very limited lifestyle in Naples,’ she said. ‘It is not particularly enjoyable for him. We also cannot really do anything together as a family in the city. That is the downside, isn’t it?’
‘Manchester was completely different. In the area where we lived, people had seen us so often that we were no longer a novelty. We could leave the house without anyone taking a photograph. In Naples, that simply is not possible.’
She added: ‘Eventually, football stops being the most important thing. You have achieved everything and experienced everything. Why would you then turn your children’s lives upside down?’
De Bruyne, one of Serie A’s highest-paid players, signed a two-year contract after arriving at Napoli. Even so, there has been uncertainty over whether he will remain with the club for the second year of the agreement.
Looking back on his first season ahead of the World Cup, De Bruyne said he was pleased that Conte had left the club.
‘It was obviously difficult for me because Conte’s approach to football is very different from mine,’ De Bruyne said.
‘I never really had the chance to play in my preferred position. Nevertheless, I always tried to give everything for the team. We were very defensive. If your aim is to win every match 1-0 with a 4-5-1 system, then you are going to play a particular style of football.’
De Bruyne signed a two-year Napoli contract but appears unlikely to prolong his stay in Italy
‘At the beginning of the season, we defended even deeper. Our striker scored only 10 goals, so the statistics were never going to look particularly impressive.’
He continued: ‘Yes, I am happy Conte has gone. He was not required to remain, as far as I am concerned. There were promises made last summer about how we would play, but ultimately, very little of that came to pass.’
‘I was disappointed by that. Football should be enjoyable, and unfortunately, I felt that element was missing.’
‘There is no point avoiding the truth: we have different ideas about football. Under Conte, I never had the opportunity to play in my natural position.’