Gundogan signs for City
City are delighted to announce the signing of Ilkay Gundogan.
German international Gundogan joins City from Borussia Dortmund on a four-year deal.A creative, technically proficient midfielder, the 25-year old can operate anywhere in the middle of the park and will give incoming manager Pep Guardiola plenty of options.
“I’m thrilled to have signed for Manchester City,” said Gundogan. “When I learned of City’s interest my heart was set on coming here and things have moved very quickly.“I have loved my time with Borussia Dortmund and I would like to thank the club and the supporters for the five very happy years I spent there.
“They gave me a platform to play on and I became a better player because of the belief, patience and trust they showed in me.
“Now I have a new challenge and that is to achieve great things with City. The opportunity to work with a coach like Pep Guardiola is something I am really looking forward to and I am flattered to be the first signing the Club has made this summer.
“I can promise the City fans I will give everything to help us win titles both in England and the Champions League. These are exciting times.
“I have my best years ahead of me and I think we can achieve great things together. I can’t wait to begin this new chapter in my career.”
The 25 year-old midfielder made 157 appearances over the past five seasons for Borussia Dortmund and has won 16 caps for Germany, scoring four goals.
City’s Director of Football Txiki Begiristain added: “Ilkay is an excellent addition to our team and we are delighted to have him on board.
“He is an intelligent and versatile midfielder who can operate in a number of different roles. I think our supporters will enjoy his work ethic and technical ability and I believe he will be a very important player for us in the coming years.”
Born in Gelsenkirchen, he started out with local side Schalke 04’s youth team, moving on to SV Gelsenkirchen-Hessler 06 where he spent five years and then had a further year at SVV Buer.
Aged 15, he signed for Vfl Bochum, making his senior debut during the 2008/09 campaign. A couple more appearances for Bochum’s second team followed before he moved to FC Nurnberg, clocking up 53 starts between 2009 and 2011.
Gundogan’s talents then caught the eye of Borussia Dortmund boss Jürgen Klopp.
During his first year at the Westfalenstadion, he was an integral member of the side that won the Bundesliga and German Cup, playing 36 times and scoring four goals.
In his second campaign, Ilkay helped Dortmund reach the Champions League final at Wembley, scoring his side’s only goal from the penalty spot as Klopp’s men lost 2-1 to Bayern Munich.
A back injury kept him side-lined for the majority of the 2013/14 season but he returned to have excellent campaigns – perhaps his best yet – in 2014/15 and 2015/16.
Gundogan is recovering well from the knee injury which ruled him out of this summer’s Euro 2016.
http://www.mcfc.co.uk/News/Team-news/2016/June/Ilkay-Gundogan-signs-for-City/1464277092
