Ilkay Gundogan agrees to join Spanish club Barcelona on a free transfer

Football

Published 26.06.2023

Ilkay Gundogan agrees to join Spanish club Barcelona on a free transfer

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Ilkay Gundogan ended his trophy-laden seven-year stick with Manchester City by agreeing to affix Barcelona on a free switch on Monday.

The Germany midfielder’s final act as a City participant — and because the crew’s captain — was to elevate the Champions League trophy, which accomplished a treble of main titles for the English membership.

Now, he’s heading to Spain on a two-year contract for a brand new expertise, despite the fact that Pep Guardiola wished to maintain the 32-year-old Gundogan — the primary signing of the City supervisor’s period from 2016.

“This club made me realize all my dreams and I will forever be thankful for this opportunity,” Gundogan mentioned. “I will carry City always in my heart. Once a blue, always a blue.”

Having missed out on securing the return of Lionel Messi, Barcelona made the signing of Gundogan a precedence so as to add some expertise to a midfield already containing children Pedri González and Gavi Páez, two of its pillars going ahead, however now not together with veteran chief Sergi Busquets, who’s leaving the membership.

Frenkie de Jong additionally performed an essential position final season for Barcelona coach Xavi Hernández, regardless of efforts by the membership to promote him within the low season of 2022.

Barceloa has set Gundogan’s buyout clause at €400 million (about US$435 million).

In a press release, the Spanish champions described their newest signing as a participant “who reads the game to perfection” and “one of the world’s best midfielders of the last decade or so.”

Gundogan’s arrival comes whereas debt-ridden Barcelona continues to be struggling to fulfill the Spanish league’s monetary guidelines. Only just lately was it capable of finding a option to formally register Gavi as a first-team participant. It is extensively anticipated that the membership might want to promote gamers to scale back its bills, and the addition of Gundogan will solely add to that burden until compensated by exits.

While Barcelona offered off a part of its future tv revenues and different property to have the money essential to signal Robert Lewandowski and different gamers final 12 months, its monetary issues have more and more pressured the membership to search out free brokers who wish to come to Spain. Last 12 months, the crew picked up present gamers Andreas Christensen, Marcos Alonso and Franck Kessie on free transfers, whereas different free brokers like Memphis Depay have come and gone lately.

City was reportedly solely providing Gundogan a one-year deal, whereas he wished an extended contract for some safety for his household.

He will go down as a City nice, not only for being the crew’s captain in its best ever season however due to among the essential targets he scored and performances he delivered within the midfield, the place he may play box-to-box, as an anchorman or — in his favoured position — as a participant supporting the striker.

No targets have been extra essential than the 2 he scored to finish City’s late comeback from 2-0 all the way down to Aston Villa on the ultimate day of the 2021-22 season, profitable the crew one other league title.

After becoming a member of from Borussia Dortmund, the place he was a Bundesliga champion in 2012, Gundogan gained 5 Premier League titles, two FA Cups, 4 English League Cups and the Champions League with City.

“He has performed an enormous half within the successes we’ve got loved in latest seasons and Ilkay’s intelligence, management and dedication to the membership — each on and off the sphere — has been an inspiration to everybody,” City director of soccer Txiki Begiristain mentioned.

Gundogan now arrives at a membership that gained the Spanish league title final season however failed for a second straight marketing campaign to maneuver previous the group part of the Champions League.