Manchester City were left frustrated after Ilkay Gundogan chose to leave the Etihad Stadium for Barcelona in June.
That is according to the Daily Mail.
So, what was written about Ilkay Gundogan and Manchester City? Let’s take a look…
How Manchester City felt about Gundogan exit
Well, it comes as no surprise to hear that Manchester City were annoyed by the German’s departure.
Gundogan was arguably the most important player at the Etihad Stadium last season, scoring goals at crucial times during the Premier League title race, along with a double in the FA Cup final as Manchester United suffered a 2-1 defeat to the Citizens.
In total, the Germany international scored 11 goals and provided seven assists in 51 appearances.
However, Manchester City were unable to convince Gundogan to extend his seven-year stay at the Etihad Stadium, and he decided to join Barcelona on a free transfer when his contract expired.
The Daily Mail believe there was “real frustration” around Manchester City at the 33-year-old’s decision to leave, even if some at the Etihad Stadium were concerned by potential injuries coming his way.
That is somewhat conflicting – as other sources claim that Gundogan did not actually feel wanted by the Citizens anymore.
Gundogan has scored one goal and provided five assists in 20 appearances for Barcelona so far this season.
Manchester City did not replace Gundogan properly
We appreciate that Guardiola decided to inject more ball carriers into his midfield this summer in the signings of Matheus Nunes and Mateo Kovacic.
However, the Portugal international and the Croatia international do not possess that goalscoring knack from midfield which Gundogan did possess in abundance.
Kovacic and Nunes do not seem to strike us as leaders like the Gelsenkirchen-born maestro was either, although that is harder to quantify from the outside looking in.
Of course, Guardiola and Txiki Begiristain want to target fairly young players like the 25-year-old Nunes, but there would have been no harm in jumping straight to a more experienced, established name as a replacement, like Joshua Kimmich for example.
Interestingly, Manchester City are now said to be interested in the Bayern Munich No.6 – so be sure to keep an eye on that situation.
Hopefully, Gundogan’s exit does not continue to trouble Manchester City, and Guardiola can make up the current six-point gap on Arsenal.
