Manchester City profiles: If fit, Ilkay Gundogan a midfield difference maker

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This summer, Manchester City signed Gundogan for a fee of somewhere in the neighborhood of £20 million – to make him apart of new manager Pep Guardiola‘s squad.

The player was thrilled to join City and work under Pep, calling him “the best coach on earth for me at the moment.” What exactly Gundo would bring to the squad was certainly up in the air upon news of the transfer, as while the player was an elite talent to have in the midfield, he carried some real injury baggage from Dortmund.

Guardiola showed immediate faith in Gundogan, playing him as soon as he was fully fit against Borussia Monchengladbach in the Champions League. He won a penalty in the game. Pep put Gundo on the team sheet again a few days later against Bournemouth. The player repaid his manager’s confidence in him with a Premier League debut goal in the match, helping City on to a 4-0 victory.

It has been Gundogan’s only goal for City thus far, but he has been a welcome sight in the midfield in most of the matches he has played. His form has been particularly impressive given the fact that until September, he had not been on a pitch for four months because of a knee injury.

According to Squawka, in four league appearances for City, Gundo averaged 92 percent pass completion. It’s 87 percent over his three Champions League appearances. This level of accuracy in his passing has been just what City needs in order to implement Guardiola’s schemes. The player’s creativity in the central areas of midfield has been entertaining to watch in the few appearances he has made.