Gündogan scored again for City and Guardiola was full of praise for him
Manchester City secured their first win in the 2024-2025 Champions League with a resounding thrashing of Slovan Bratislava (0-4). Ilkay Gündogan was one of the figures of the match, scoring the goal that opened the scoring and that would start the ‘skyblue whirlwind’, which would increase their advantage at the feet of Phil Foden, Erling Haaland and James McAtee.
In Slovakia, the German midfielder had to cover the position of the injured Rodri Hernández in the centre of the midfield, and he more than fulfilled his role. He did not lose balls, he led the ‘citizens’ attacks and, in addition, scored his first goal since his return to the ‘citizen’ team.
Gündogan hunted down a rebounded ball on the edge of the area, after Savinho’s shot and took a ‘sablaza’ that, after touching a defender, slipped into Takac’s goal. A goal that brings a smile to the German’s face, frustrated by the little participation he has had at the start of the season but which, starting from this match, could be much more increased.
Guardiola was full of praise for him
At the end of the match, Pep Guardiola did not hesitate to pay tribute to the footballer in front of the media. “Today he played at the level that we know he can play. The match in Newcastle was not good at all, perhaps one of the worst matches he has played in the last eight or nine years… Today he played a fantastic match,” said the man from Sampedor, who seems to have found the solution to his problems in the midfield with the former FC Barcelona player.