As the years have gone by, Ilkay Gündogan has established himself as a real captain within Pep Guardiola’s collective, making a series of starts with Manchester City and seeing himself inherited the captain’s armband. After winning the Cup – Championship – Champions League treble with the Mancunian club during the previous financial year, the German midfielder who reached the end of his contract on June 30, 2022 flew towards new horizons. A few months later, his arrival at FC Barcelona still raises questions. In an attempt to definitively shed light on his career choice, Sport became interested in the circumstances which led him to leave the north of England.
In this perspective, the Spanish media informs us that Manchester City has not really pushed to try to renew the lease of its captain after more than 7 years of good and loyal service. On the sidelines of the 2022 World Cup, the reigning English champion had sent a first proposal to the representatives of the German international (71 caps, 19 goals) with a view to extending his contract for an additional season while the main interested party wished to minimum stay two more years. Over the weeks, the two parties failed to find common ground and it was ultimately FC Barcelona who jumped at the opportunity to enlist the native of Gelsenkirchen as a free player.
