The departure of the German midfielder is becoming increasingly likely, and the Spanish press is even reporting that his return to Manchester City is a done deal.
A year and out. Since the start of the transfer window, FC Barcelona have been looking to offload Gündoğan. Not because he hasn’t performed well last year, quite the contrary as he was one of the few Barcelona players to be up to scratch under Xavi, but his salary is a problem. A big problem. Having arrived on a free transfer but with a substantial and escalating salary, he had become undesirable for purely financial reasons.
In dire straits due to LaLiga’s financial fair play rules, the Catalan club cannot, for example, still register Dani Olmo, and will also have difficulties registering other potential recruits before the end of the transfer window. So they needed to bring in some cash and free up some wage bill. With Frenkie de Jong or Ronald Araujo not finding a buyer, Barça had to resign themselves to putting Gündoğan on the market. If the German didn’t want to leave, he has finally agreed to pack his bags in recent days.
Guardiola is delighted
As Catalan media outlets like Sport and RAC1 report, he is going to return to Manchester City, a year after his departure. He has already spoken with the Manchester management, just as he has also had conversations with Pep Guardiola. He has asked his former coach to ensure that the management finalises this deal quickly. For his part, the Catalan coach is delighted to be able to find his former midfield stalwart again.
The Barça management will logically not put any obstacles in his way and could even allow the player to leave for free, terminating his contract and thus not asking anything from Manchester City. Joan Laporta, Deco, and company will be satisfied with the savings made on his salary, which will allow the club to have a little more leeway during the final sprint of the summer market. Gündoğan’s return to the Etihad Stadium is imminent.
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