ILKAY GUNDOGAN SIGNS WITH SPANISH CHAMPIONS BARCELONA
Former Manchester City captain and free agent midfielder Ilkay Gündoğan has signed with Spanish champions Barcelona, the club announced the news on Monday morning.
After a stellar season with Manchester City in which the 32-year-old won the European treble, Ilkay Gündoğan will no longer be one of the faces of the Premier League during the 2023/24 campaign. The five-time Premier League champion signs with Barcelona on a two-year deal that will keep him at the Catalonian club until June 30th 2025, with an option for a further season. The Spanish giants set Gündoğan’s release clause at a staggering €400 million, a figure high enough to ward off any interested suitors.
English champions Manchester City were interested in keeping the German ace and despite interest from some Saudi Arabian clubs and North London giants, Arsenal, Gündoğan was intent on making the move to the Spanish La Liga.
In a video released by the club, Gündoğan said, “Hola, Culers! I’m very happy to sign with Barca. [I’m] excited for this new journey and to join this beautiful club. See you soon! Forca, Barca!”
Just 16 days after becoming the first Manchester City captain in history to lift the Champions League trophy, Ilkay Gündoğan is now a Barcelona player. The Gelsenkirchen-born player has had a year to remember and was a pivotal part of City’s treble success this season. Arguably his best season in Manchester City colors, Gündoğan notched crucial performances when the team needed it most.
The two-time Premier League Player of the Month capped his time at City in 2022/23 by scoring an important 5 Premier League goals down the stretch in April that helped the team steal the Premier League title from league leaders Arsenal. He also scored two crucial goals in the FA Cup final, including the winner, against derby rivals, Manchester United, helping secure two of the team’s three major trophies this season.
In a piece that he wrote for The Players’ Tribune, Gündoğan said, “Today is bittersweet. Goodbyes are never easy, but it’s even harder with this team. When I had to break the news to the boys that I was leaving in our group chat, I was very emotional. I will miss all of them, honestly.”
“…But I am happy to say that I’m leaving here as a champion, and I have nothing but love for the club in my heart. How many footballers can say goodbye as the captain of a treble team?… The thing that I will remember the most is the feeling inside the squad, especially this season. I’ve never experienced something like it in football… This has been the closest team I’ve ever been a part of, and I think that’s part of why we were able to finally lift the Champions League trophy.”
Gündoğan will reunite at Barcelona with former Borussia Dortmund teammate Robert Lewandowski, almost a decade after they played together in the Bundesliga and the former City captain will have a chance to work under one of the best midfield minds in football in Xavi Hernandez.
La Blaugrana have been working on a deal to acquire the German international over the past few weeks and now officially make him the club’s first signing this summer. Gündoğan, who only turns 33 years old in October, will now join one of the most talented young midfields in the world.
The 2021/22 Premier League Game Changer of the Season joins 26-year-olds Frenkie de Jong and Franck Kessie, and Spanish midfielders Pedri and Gavi, who are just 20 and 18 years old. The most experienced of Barcelona’s current midfielders, especially now with the departure of long-time pivot Sergio Busquests to MLS’ Inter Miami, Gündoğan will be tasked with leadership, dictating the tempo of play and maintaining composure on and off the ball in midfield.
“If I was going to move, there is only one club in the world that made sense,” said Gündoğan. “It was Barcelona or nothing. Ever since I was a little kid, I dreamed of wearing that shirt someday. I am confident that I have a few more years left at the highest level, and I just want to help bring Barcelona back to where they deserve to be.”
As for the fans, players, and all the staff at Manchester City, Gündoğan left them a heartfelt message, thanking all of them for the input they had on him as a person and player. He said, “I just want you to know that I will always be City. Nothing can break that bond. It is a love on the highest level possible. All I can say is thank you.”
“I will carry City always in my heart,” Gündoğan told the club’s website. “Once a blue, always a blue.”
Gündoğan was Guardiola’s first signing at Manchester City and exits the club having won the Champions League title, five Premier League titles, 4 EFL Cups, and two FA Cups in just seven years at the club. Gündoğan also contributed a total of 60 goals, 44 of them coming in the Premier League, in 304 club appearances.
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
Photo: Steffen Prößdorf. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
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