The key factor behind Ilkay Gundogan’s contract extension

The Man City veteran has extended his stay but a recent upturn in form offers hope for the future

Manchester City are set to bid a fond farewell to a great of their midfield, a man who has captained them, who has scored and made goals and defined an era. But only one. Even as Kevin De Bruyne’s summer departure has been confirmed, Ilkay Gundogan’s contract has been extended.

A clause in his contract has been triggered. “What will happen, I don’t know, but he has one more year on his contract here now,” said Pep Guardiola. Upon his return from Barcelona, Gundogan had signed a one-year deal with an extra year, depending on how involved he was. He has already made 43 appearances, 31 of them starts, amounting to more than 2700 minutes on the pitch. Only Josko Gvardiol has featured in more matches for City this season. Injury-prone when supposedly in his prime, in his 35th year, Gundogan now appears an anomaly in this City squad, immune to injuries in a year when many another has been struck down.

If City are in the midst of a rebuild, with De Bruyne going, with questions if others of their band of thirty-somethings will follow, their oldest outfielder is tied down. It has been a troubled return at times for Gundogan: the captain who lifted three trophies in swift succession before leaving in 2023 has looked off the pace and exposed during some of their defeats. It has been chastening, cruel, a sad sight.

Of late, however, Guardiola has seen signs that an old Gundogan is the Gundogan of old. The German made his fifth consecutive start in the 5-2 defeat of Crystal Palace, completing the game.

(Getty Images)

“The Gundo here and the Gundo at Bournemouth, Leicester – that’s the Gundo I remember,” said his manager. “The one that helped us win the treble and the quadruple and was such an important player. His defensive intelligence, the way he arrives, it helps us massively. As a team, everyone has been down and below their best. But when a team plays good, the individual levels rise. Without that you cannot do it.”

There was merit to his argument. Gundogan was a brilliant player in a brilliant team in 2022-23. In a failing side, his shortcomings have been more visible. There have been the games where City have been overpowered in midfield and caught on the counter-attack. He has cited the age of his first signing for City when branding City an old team. In January, Guardiola said Gundogan doesn’t “have the legs to run 40m”. In February, he said Gundogan had noted an “unbelievable” difference between the Premier League he left and this season’s division. If it is faster, at times it has scarcely suited a man who is slowing.

But Guardiola noted De Bruyne’s brilliance against Palace and argued the younger legs around him were a factor. They could help extend Gundogan’s time in the team, too, if flying full-backs and all-action wingers do much of the running. And if the players around him can make him look better, that applies to one in particular: Rodri’s return would free Gundogan up from defensive duties, allow him to spend more time in the final third and mean he has to do fewer unconvincing impressions of a defensive midfielder.

They had dovetailed well a couple of years ago, but have only been on the pitch for 111 minutes together this season. With Rodri, could Gundogan return to the match-winning role he had? He still has the footballing brain and, presumably, the ability to sniff out an opportunity and the skill to finish. But those 43 games this campaign have brought just two goals and three assists; in part because he has been played deeper, but perhaps due to a lack of dynamism.

Gundogan has benefitted from the start of Man City’s rebuild (Getty Images)

But with Nico Gonzalez and Omar Marmoush already having arrived, if there is a deluxe replacement for De Bruyne, it may seem likelier that Gundogan is rebranded a back-up, possibly even surplus to requirements in the shifting make-up of City’s midfield. He has played more than they expected this season which, like many another thing, can be attributed to Rodri’s absence. Those 43 appearances could become 58 by the end of the Club World Cup.

He is nine months older than De Bruyne and will be almost 36 when his extended contract expires. And there may be an irony to it. Gundogan wanted a three-year deal in 2023. Barcelona offered it, got him for the first year of those three, when he was closest to his best, and City now have him contracted for the other two. He joined them in 2016 and now, following a year in exile, is tied down until 2026.

It is a tribute to Gundogan’s staying power. But while City are now guaranteed to see more of him, they may want to see less of him on the pitch next year.