BBC pundit Garth Crooks has said that Manchester City captain Ilkay Gundogan is his Player of the Season.
Effectively, he firmly believes that the £20 million (Guardian) has even outperformed Erling Haaland, who won the Premier League’s Player of the Season and Young Player of the Season awards.
However, in his Team of the Season for BBC Sport, Garth Crooks was full of praise for Ilkay Gundogan.
Garth Crooks picks Ilkay Gundogan as his Player of the Season
While the German international has been branded as an ‘outstanding midfielder’ by Roy Keane this season, many would disagree that he has outshone Erling Haaland.
After all, the 22-year-old has shattered virtually every goal record that exists in the Premier League, and that too in his debut campaign.
While picking his Team of the Season, Garth Crooks made a case for Ilkay Gundogan being the Player of the Season.
“This is my player of the season and his biggest accomplishment has yet to be achieved.”
“He has already won the Premier League title, the FA Cup final awaits and the biggest prize of all and the one that has eluded him and Manchester City, the Champions League trophy sits in Istanbul waiting to be lifted by their captain”, Garth Crooks went on to say about Ilkay Gundogan when making his Player of the Season claim.
“Should Ilkay Gundogan and City do the treble, it would be the most magnificent achievement. However, they have to beat Manchester United in the FA Cup before they can do that and there can’t be any greater motivation for their neighbours and arch-enemies than to destroy City’s dream.”
As brilliant as Ilkay Gundogan has been, this is far from the truth
While it is nice to see Garth Crooks make such an impassioned case about the underappreciated Ilkay Gundogan, several other candidates at Manchester City alone have a better case for being classed as the Player of the Season.
Besides even Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne and Rodri have been the standout players in their positions on the planet even this campaign.
While Nathan Ake’s incredible adaptation as a left-back has been key to City’s revival, and John Stones’ masterful displays in a hybrid role between either centre-back or right-back as well as in midfield has been central to Pep Guardiola’s new system being virtually unstoppable.
