Manchester City are now pushing to try and seal a fresh contract agreement with Ilkay Gundogan, with reports from Spain, via Sport Witness, reporting that the club can "double" the offer they have put on the table for the midfielder.
What is the latest on Ilkay Gundogan leaving Man City?
The midfielder has been a mainstay in Pep Guardiola's team since his move to them back in the 2016/17 season. Since that switch, the player has managed a haul of 187 Premier League games and has bagged 44 goals along the way, with 16 assists.
Despite uncertainty around his future, the German has continued to produce the goods during the current campaign for City too. With the team fighting for another league title, Gundogan has managed to feature in 30 games and has eight goals with four assists to his name so far. He added to that tally during his side's game against Everton, which ended in a 3-0 victory for the Etihad Stadium outfit.
It was an elegant effort from the midfielder that opened the scoring before he teed up Erling Haaland for a second only minutes later. He then bagged a second of his own in the 51st minute to send City home with a comfortable win.
However, the player has yet to agree to fresh terms at the Premier League side and Barcelona are eager to try and seal a deal for the midfielder this summer, with his contract set to expire.
Reports in Spain though, via Sport Witness, suggest that Guardiola's side are aware of how key a player Gundogan is for them and are desperate to try and keep him. That means that they can "double their offer" in order to try and reach an agreement to keep him on at the club. It's also meant that the side are prepared to extend the length of his deal according to this report, which would be longer than a year. If City can keep him, then it would be a real blow for Barcelona.
Should Man City keep Ilkay Gundogan?
The Premier League outfit are a better team with the German in it, of that there can be no question. He has been called a "genius" in the past by football talent scout Jacek Kulig for example and his performances on the field back that up. This year alone he has a WhoScored rating of 7.13 in the Premier League and has even bagged two Man of the Match awards. It shows he is not slowing down and is, in fact, playing as well as ever. It's actually one of his best scores in a City shirt, beating out four other PL campaign ratings.
The midfielder then is someone that City should definitely try to tie down to fresh terms if they can. He adds attacking guile and vision to the centre of the field and if he did leave on a free, it would be a blow for Guardiola.
