Big news in the transfer market today as Manchester City complete the signing of star midfielder Ilkay Gundogan from Borussia Dortmund for a fee reported to be around 20 Million Euros. This also marks the first signing of City under Pep's reign. Let's get into what this transfer brings us !
The Deal as we know ,
Gundogan's name has come up in every transfer window for the past few occasions and a lot of clubs were trying to lure him. Clubs like Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid were all linked with the player. Most of the fans wanted him to play for their club. But city were closely linked last year too and this year they have made it happen. He had just 1 more year in his contract with Dortmund. So city cashed in and got their first recruit in Pep's office.
His career so far ,
Manchester City is his third top tier club, previously played for FC Nurnberg and Borussia Dortmund. He is known as a star midfielder. He uses to dominate in the centre and push his team forward. He is a great chance creator and scores at times. But a fine player to take spot kicks. He is a regular starter for his club. Unfortunately he had to sit aside for 15 months during the 2013-14 season owing to a back injury. He made his first international appearance for Germany in 2011 and has 16 caps to his name.
Manchester City and Gundogan - Will it work out ?
You may be wondering if he will fit in city's plans! But the answer is - no one knows. It's a new manager for them and we haven't seen them play. So if they made the decision to sign him, then it means they need him and know what they are doing. So how about stop thinking and seeing what happens next !
His role ,
Manchester City has seriously increased their depth in the midfield to several levels in the past seasons and now are available with a lot of options. The likes of Yaya Toure, Silva, Nasri, Kevin de Bruyne, Fernando, Fernandinho and now Gundogan will all be fighting for the same spot. But as we know Guardiola is the HOD of midfield and he had a similar squad in all his previous clubs. So he will be playing a strong midfield with a single striker and Gundogan will definitely be controlling the midfield.
Premier League Quality ,
Gundogan who is sidelined from the EUROS 2016 might be out until September. Once he comes back from the injury, he should find his form back. People have seen big names like Di Maria, Falcao, Schweinsteiger fail in the recent times to shine and it wont be an easy job for him to settle so quickly if he is normal. But he is regarded as an "intelligent and complete" midfielder by his former gaffer Klopp. So let's see if he is intelligent after all !
This deal looks to have pleased the Manchester City fans and they are looking forward to see him in their colours. He will also be looking forward to have a injury free season for the best. We will be coming up with the possible line-ups and tactics as the season nears. So keep coming and pour your views !
