Ilkay Gündogan : The Manchester City legend

The German midfielder, Ilkay Gundogan has said his goodbyes to the Manchester City fans through an emotional letter, he posted on social media. He showed his gratitude for the club and Pep Guardiola, who signed him in the first place. So we take a look at his journey in the City shirt and the legacy he's leaving behind.

The Manchester City legend has won an array of trophies for the club and according to him it couldn't have ended in a better way than winning a treble. It really was a fairytale ending to his City run.

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His journey as a Cityzen

The midfielder was Pep Guardiola's first signing in 2016 from Borussia Dortmund for just £20m. Pep became a fan of the German when he saw him play at Dortmund against his former club Bayern Munich. As Gündogan was City's first signing he marked the start of the Pep Guardiola era and helped City become arguably the best team in the world right now.

A shaky start to his City career

Gündogan's start to his City career was not that great. He made his debut in September and was in a good goal scoring form untill December when he tore his cruciate ligament in the right knee in a game against Watford and missed the remainder of the 2016-17 season.

He made his come back in a game against Watford only, 9 months later in September. He scored in that game as a substitute and announced his arrival. In that Premier League season, he set two individual records in a game against Chelsea. One for attempting the most number of passes and one for completing the most number of passes. 

When he signed for City, he was given a 4-year-long contract. He chipped in with goals and assists for Manchester City every now and then and most importantly he understood Pep's system so well that he became instrumental in the midfield region so with only 1 year left on his contract in 2019, City offered to extend his contract by another 4 years, which he gracefully accepted.

Became pivotal in City's midfield

At the start of the 2020 season he became positive for COVID-19 and was forced to be in quarantine for 10 days. On his return, he again scored a goal again West Brom securing a draw for his team. The start of the next year was great for him. He won the Premier League Player of the month award in consecutive months, for his performances in January and February. 

He became the first City player ever to win the award for two consecutive months. That year marked Manchester City's 5th title and Gündogan's 3rd in five years. Their 2021 campaign ended in a defeat in the champions league final against Chelsea by only one goal. Everyone expected Man City to win but Chelsea had other ideas.

The 2022 season was a special one for Gündogan. He played a crucial role in Manchester City's Premier league triumph that year by scoring a brace on the final week of the Matchday and also became one of the most clutch players in City's history.

Big game player status

So after 70 minutes, Aston Villa was leading the scoreline by 2 goals to nil and then Ilkay Gundogan gave Man City a glimmer of hope by scoring a header in the far corner. The score was equalised by Rodri after just 2 minutes but it wouldn't have been enough if Liverpool won their match, so City needed to win the game to secure the title, it was as simple as that. And Gündogan came up big for City. He scored a simple tap in provided by another Manchester City legend, Kevin De Bruyne again at the back post and gave City the lead. 

After that it was just a walk in the park for City. They didn't give Aston Villa any chance whatsoever to score and the German midfielder earned his 4th Premier League medal. That year too they suffered heartbreak against Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final and got knocked out in the extra-time.

At the start of the 2022 season Gündogan was named captain of the City team as another Manchester City legend, Fernandinho with over 250 appearances, left the club. The German was a leader from the very beginning of his career. He understood the game better than most of the players and was right to be chosen as captain by his teammates.

Ending his time at City on a high note

He scored crucial goals against Leads and Everton, helping City to walk past Arsenal in what became a very boring title race by the end of the season. His goal against Everton has won him the Manchester City Goal of the Season award.

 In the FA Cup final on 3rd June he scored a wonderful volley which was the fastest FA Cup final goal ever. And in the second half, when the score was tied through a penalty he again scored another volley from a corner by Kevin De Bruyne. He earned the Man Of The Match award in the final by BBC sports pundits.

In June 10, he went on to win the treble by defeating Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul with the help of Rodri's wonder strike from inside the edge of the box. This City team is one of the best version of footballing teams to have ever graced the game and by winning the treble they just put a pin in that.

He came in clutches and is leaving with flying wings

Gündogan has been immense for City in the last couple of years. He has been a serial trophy winner for City and was instrumental in City's success over the years, making him a Manchester City legend. He controlled the midfield alongside Kevin De Bruyne and acted as a leader to his teammates even when he was not captaining the side.

His departure would hurt a lot of City fans because of how important he was for the team. His decision to join Barcelona was a personal one. It was his boyhood dream to play for Barcelona at some point in his career and it is finally coming true.

He thanked Pep Guardiola for signing him in the first place from Borussia Dortmund and that he owes a lot to Pep for being patient during his injuries and seeing the potential what other people couldn't see in him. Pep reciprocated the same feelings by saying that "he loves and adores him".

Ilkay Gündogan heartfelt goodbye message : "Thank you, City" by The Players Tribune.

His achievements and records for the Cityzens

With the club

• Premier League: 2017–18, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23.
• FA Cup: 2018–19, 2022–23.
• EFL Cup: 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21.
• FA Community Shield: 2018, 2019.
• UEFA Champions League: 2022-23.

Individual records

• PFA Premier League Team of the Year: 2020–21
• Premier League Game Changer of the Season: 2021–22.
• Premier League Player of the Month: January 2021, February 2021.
• UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season: 2020 - 21.
• Manchester City Goal of the Season: 2022-23.

His Stats