Ilkay Gündogan was one of the biggest hits of the last transfer market. After completing his first season at FC Barcelona, the German made the decision to leave Barcelona to return to Manchester City. His departure took everyone by surprise because the midfielder had been one of the best players of the previous season, and now the player has spoken out about it in an interview with the 'Daily Mail'.
"I played for one of the biggest teams in the world. I fulfilled one of my childhood dreams, to play for Barça and wear that badge"
The German star positively assessed his only campaign wearing the Barça shirt, assuring that, despite not managing to lift any title, the team managed to maintain a good level throughout the campaign. "People might look at last season and think we didn't win anything. That's true. But if you look at how we played, we had 85 points at the end of the season, just three less than the year before, when they won the league," he said.
However, Gündogan acknowledged that Real Madrid's high level was the main reason why the Catalans were unable to win LaLiga. "We were playing against a very difficult Real Madrid. I feel very privileged to have played for Barcelona. In other circumstances things might have been different. It was a tough experience but also a wonderful one. I don't regret it at all," he said.
Pep Guardiola, the key to his return to City
Regarding his return to Manchester, Ilkay revealed that Pep Guardiola played a fundamental role in his final decision. "When I knew it would be great to come back, I spoke to Pep. I called him and asked him if he could imagine it. Not out of the blue. I had thought about it. It was something I personally wanted to do and I didn't have much to lose, you know?" he said.
"I was a bit nervous before the decision, but it was a good decision. Obviously, my relationship with Pep was always good. Even though I was in Barcelona last year, we had a few phone calls. In fact, we also met there once"
Finally, the midfielder revealed his reaction to finding out that his return to the Etihad Stadium was possible. "There's no reason to hide that we have a good connection, but in the end you never know how people will react or what they will think about certain situations. So when I mentioned it and received a great response, I felt relieved," concluded Gündogan, who this season has already established himself as a great substitute for the Sampedor player in the 'skyblue' team.