Speaking exclusively in Monday’s edition of Kicker, İlkay Gündoğan has discussed his Manchester City future, with his current deal expiring at the end of the 2022/23 season. In short, Gündoğan is happy at the Premier League club and won’t rush into making a decision in the near future. The Germany international’s future may also be dependent on Pep Guardiola, who has a contract until 2023.
Your contract in Manchester ends in the summer, when do you decide about your future?
“I don’t know if it has anything to do with age but I’m pretty relaxed about it. Even if it doesn’t sound like much anymore, the summer of 2023 still feels so far away. I’m not really worried about that at the moment. It’s not even clear what’s going to happen to our coach. His contract only runs until 2023 and nobody knows how he plans.”
Are you counting on him taking you somewhere next summer?
“I haven’t thought that far but in my career I’ve always made my decisions dependent on who the coach is there because that’s the most important thing for a footballer, is that the coach values you but can also challenge and encourage you. That hasn’t changed for me to this day although I feel very comfortable in Manchester and I’m very satisfied. I have a lot to thank the club for and have experienced a lot of great moments. According, I can basically imagine staying for a few more years.”
Jürgen Klopp is tied to Liverpool until 2026, is a return to him an option?
“I think I can rule out that that will happen. Everyone knows how much I like and appreciate Kloppo but I’ve been at City for a few years now and as a City captain to rival Liverpool? No, I can’t imagine that.”
Gündoğan arrived at Manchester City from Borussia Dortmund in 2016 for a reported €27m. The now 32-year-old has played 273 games across all competitions, scoring 51 and creating 35. Gündoğan has also represented Germany on 62 occasions and has travelled to Qatar for the 2022 World Cup.
GGFN | Daniel Pinder
