Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan spoke about what he sees for himself in the future
Ilkay Gundogan wants to keeping playing for up to four years and is delighted to have earned a new Manchester City contract. The Treble-winning midfielder returned to the club last summer after a year at Barcelona and has played his way into an extension.
That fitness wasn’t appreciated much by City fans while the team was losing so many games between November and March, yet it speaks to how well Gundogan looks after himself. As a result, he thinks he is still capable of playing for up to four more years.
That may not all come at City, but there is at least one more year that he is looking forward to. Having returned to the club last summer, he is not planning on leaving again.
“I have one year left on my contract, and I’m happy about that. Not just because I’m getting older, where every year is a long way off. But also because I absolutely love being at City,” he told BILD.
“Honestly, I want to play football for several more years: because I feel absolutely ready for it, I’m very fit, and I take care of my body. I feel like I really enjoy football: not just another year, but at least two years, maybe even three or four.
“I’m already thinking about what comes next. I’m not afraid of those thoughts, though; I’m more excited.
“But my body’s still cooperating, and Pep isn’t saying to me, ‘Hey, you’re falling off the playing field…’”
Gundogan has a terrific relationship with Guardiola, and called him up when things went south at Barcelona last year. The manager instantly put the wheels in motion for a deal to be done and in no time at all the 34-year-old was heading back to his former club.
During his previous spell in Manchester, Gundogan spent some time coaching in the academy as he trained for his coaching badges. Going into management is something he remains interested in, and spending time as Guardiola’s assistant would be a dream.
“I didn’t ask him, no. But there’s probably nothing better than starting out as Pep’s assistant,” he said.
“The examples of the past few years have shown that it can pave the way for a coaching career. Being Pep’s assistant coach would be extremely appealing to me.”