22 May 2022 is a special date for every Man City fan.
The 2021/22 campaign saw the Manchester club go head-to-head once again with Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool team after many years of hard-fought battle, but this time it would come down to the wire.
On the final day of the Premier League season, Man City would find themselves 2-0 down to Aston Villa and the title heading to Anfield, only for Ilkay Gundogan to step up and save the day with a brace to cement himself in City folklore forever.
It was arguably the greatest moment of the 34-year-old’s career, however, it was not all rosy for the German star on that day, as the midfielder would share in the aftermath why he was ‘disappointed’ with Pep Guardiola.
Ilkay Gundogan was left ‘disappointed’ before famous Aston Villa brace
Phil Foden recently stated that the demands of previous Man City seasons is one of the reasons why the Manchester club have struggled this season and the 2021/22 campaign is a perfect example of this.
Man City won the title with 93 points, one ahead of Liverpool, but needed a miracle to get their hands on the Premier League that season.
Gundogan’s brace against Aston Villa is only second to Sergio Aguero’s QPR goal in the eyes of many Man City fans when it comes to the greatest moments in the Manchester club’s history, however, the German was not happy for the entirety of that day.
The midfielder admitted in Man City’s Together: Champions Again! documentary that he was ‘disappointed’ that Guardiola did not start him against Aston Villa, which may have provided the fuel for what he would go on to do that day.
“If you want me to be 100 per cent honest, I was expecting to play, to start,” Gundogan said. “So obviously, after the team was announced, I can’t deny I was disappointed that I was not playing.”
Gundogan has always had a strong relationship with Guardiola, so the 34-year-old would have respected the legendary coach’s decision on that day.
However, when things are going wrong, it is always harder for players to watch from the bench as they have no control over what is playing out.
Oleksandr Zinchenko could not watch Man City vs Aston Villa
Another player who did not start that day was Oleksandr Zinchenko; however, the Ukrainian would come on later in the contest for Fernandinho, but the left-back could not watch the first half.
“It is almost impossible in this kind of situation, when there is a lot of pressure around, to be outside of the pitch,” Zinchenko said in the Together: Champions Again! documentary.
“The first half, I was watching the game and we were 1-0 down and I said to the guys, I think it was Raheem Sterling and I think Jack Grealish was close to me, and I said ‘guys, I can’t watch, I cannot honestly’. It is better to be on the pitch than outside.”
Both Gundogan and Zinchenko would go on to play their part in the second-half comeback and despite the disappointment of not starting the game, it is a day in their careers they will never forget.
