The rumours of who Manchester City will look to replace Ilkay Gundogan seem certain to run for a few weeks – but it won't be Paul Pogba, according to one report. But he's only had one Ilkay Gundogan – and he's been blooming brilliant. He's transformed players, he's developing others into genuine era-defining superstars. Pep Guardiola has had flashier stars, for sure. To think, this guy used to do the very same thing for Jurgen Klopp – while over at Liverpool, Pep's former disciple Thiago Alcantara is coming to embody Klopp's style of play. Gundogan was top scorer that season – it was almost as if his manager concocted the plan with the lynchpin beside him.Īt every tactical tweak, at every innovative crossroad that City have found themselves, Gundogan has offered the essentials of Guardiola's principles: he's understood every assignment and become the very essence of what the Catalan wants to achieve. Likewise, he was the archetypal false nine for Pep during that lockdown season where he obliterated the rest of the Premier League without a striker. He seems tailor-made for that job: always being in the right place, mastering the manager's every command… and going completely under the radar for his efforts. Long before that, Gundogan slotted in as a No.6 during Pep's second title win, taking to the role like he'd played there all his life and offering Silva and De Bruyne the freedom to do things on the ball that he himself can do, too. The lack of such a player in the No.8 role in quests gone by was all too obvious – and he managed to fix the issue. The magnificent Bernabeu win before the first lockdown, which lit the touchpaper for City's ventures towards better European runs, was orchestrated by Gundo, quietly ticking away in midfield. Where De Bruyne has been the fireworks, Gundogan has been the tempo-setter.
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