Barca News
Ilkay Gündogan has already assumed that he will leave FC Barcelona after the conversation he had with Hansi Flick last week and his preferred destination is to return to Manchester City , where he played for seven seasons, from 2016-17 to 2022-23.
So much so that the German midfielder personally telephoned Pep Guardiola a few days ago to ask him that he wanted to return to the Etihad Stadium this August before the market closes on Friday 30th, according to the program ‘ Què t’hi jugues ‘ on Cadena SER.
Guardiola, who wanted to retain the German last summer before he joined Barça after his contract in Manchester expired, is delighted and willing to welcome ‘Gündo’ with open arms. The German’s representative is already in Manchester negotiating his arrival.
Events have since accelerated in a context marked by the overbooking of attacking midfielders at Barça , the fact that Flick does not see Gündogan as the first option to press high behind Robert Lewandowski and a financial scenario with the need for the Blaugrana to save a gross fee of 20 million euros to be able to register Dani Olmo and complete their chapter of reinforcements.
Gündogan , 33, wants to leave Barça on good terms, who will not put up any obstacles to his departure, much less to the point that he could leave for free, just as he arrived from Manchester . In the conversation with Guardiola , according to Cadena SER, the player promised him that Barça would let him go without having to pay a transfer fee.
The next few hours will be crucial in defining the future of Gündogan , who has also been tempted in Turkey by Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe and is considering options for Saudi Arabia and Qatar .
Once Gündo ‘s departure is complete, Barça will be able to use 70% of his 20 million euros gross salary to reinvest in a new signing. It will be 14 million euros for the Blaugrana club to sign Olmo , if possible before Saturday’s match (7 p.m.) against Athletic in Montjuïc . The financial manoeuvre is possible according to LaLiga regulations, which allow this percentage if a ‘franchise player’ leaves, that is, one who has a salary of 5% or more of the club’s total salary mass.
Source: Mundo Deportivo
