İlkay Gündoğan- Swiss Army Knife

He can operate deep, he can play advanced, he can score goals, he can provide control- why it isn't as easy to replace the German as some think.

İlkay Gündoğan represents something special- he was Pep Guardiola’s first-ever signing at Manchester City. Signed in 2016/17, Gündoğan started life at City very well, including a wonderful performance against Barcelona. But then came the injuries, which meant he was out for the remainder of the season. 2017/18 saw him as a mere rotation option, solely down to the quality of David Silva, Fernandinho and Kevin De Bruyne.

When Fernandinho was out in 2018/19, Gündoğan’s chance to break into the team had finally come- this time as a lone 6, a position he was unfamiliar with. But he did it so well, helping City to a domestic treble.

His most notable period for City came in 2020/21 when he was deployed in an advanced 8 position. Instead of playing deep, Gündoğan was allowed to exploit the left-half space, attacking the box with his runs from deep. It added an extra goal threat to City’s arsenal, and Gündoğan played a talisman-like role that season, scoring 13 goals in the Premier League.

Gündoğan’s contributions to the club can be best summed up with his winning brace against Aston Villa- a last-minute win to seal the club’s 7th Premier League title.

Lone 6, double pivot, advanced role. He has done it all.

İlkay Gündoğan has been underrated by the masses, including the City fanbase. His wide range of skills are useful assets that mean he’s been deployed in a variety of roles, but it also means that it can be hard to find a player who can replace his completeness.

What makes Gündoğan so special? What makes him a player City cannot replace?

First-phase master

‘First phase’ refers to a team’s own defensive third. It’s an area of the pitch where opposition attackers try to overwhelm defences, often pressing high. To maintain control in this area is often tough, and requires technical defenders and midfielders to carry the ball out of danger when attackers are pressing.

Kevin De Bruyne, deadly as he is in his passing, cannot operate in the first phase efficiently.

A first-phase specialist possesses these qualities:

• Ability to receive the ball on the half-turn.

• Willing to use physicality to shove defenders off.

• Close control and low centre of gravity to navigate in tight spaces.

Gündoğan is a technical midfielder, capable of receiving the ball from the centre-backs and progressing the ball up the pitch. To be able to keep the ball, evade pressure and start attacks, is an invaluable asset that Gündoğan possesses.

Here, Gündoğan receives the ball from the centre-back, pressed by 3 Arsenal players. His body orientation and receiving of the ball buy him more time and space, as he uses a bit of acceleration and pace to drive the play forward.

Control and retention

Control isn’t just meaningless possession, it is stringing passes with the right intent, keeping the ball in the process. It is the best way of creating chances without losing the ball. To exert control, teams must play slower, and employ a more methodical style of play. It’s why Manchester City play the slowest football in the league.

Gündoğan embodies this philosophy. He takes risks, dictates tempo when required, and values keeping the ball over everything. He is the stabilizer that allows De Bruyne and Haaland to cause chaos, using switches of play, clever passes and touches to keep City’s build-up going.

He is not just someone City look at to carry the ball out of the first phase, but also someone City need to keep control of games.

Gündoğan’s scout report says it all. The pass% on all ends is world-class. He can play some of City’s more dangerous passes, calculating the best move possible.

https://twitter.com/OptaJoe/status/1646844770671640578?s=20

This assist to Haaland against Crystal Palace represents Gündoğan’s game excellently. He has two options: slip a ball to Haaland or pass it to Julian Alvarez to recycle possession. He picks the former one, not just creating City’s most dangerous chance but also building on the momentum and control City had created over the course of the game

Gündoğan’s quality in possession truly came to light in a win against Leeds, where he operated as a #6. Metronomic, clipped passes to the runners, switches of play. Whenever City needed to recycle and keep the ball, Gundo was their man. It’s an indication of the level of trust the players have when he’s with the ball, producing stats of the highest order.

https://twitter.com/Squawka/status/1654906529944838146?s=20

Late box runs

It is almost surreal that a midfielder as technical, as silky in his movements in the first and second phases as Gündoğan, is also capable of bagging a couple of goals with his runs into the box. His late box runs could not be tracked, as he ended the 20/21 season as Manchester City’s top scorer.

Gündoğan doesn’t just sense and detect space, he exploits it. If the space is behind him, he’ll produce a flick or moment of magic to facilitate play for someone else (as seen below)

Gündoğan’s qualities truly shine here. The quick scanning to notice Grealish seconds before he receives the ball, the smooth half-turn to open up an avenue of space, the deft, metronomic pass to Grealish to create the equalizer- İlkay at his finest.

If he notices gaps in the box due to an abundance of markers on the striker, he’ll make a run to the near post and finish a chance.

Against Leeds, it’s not just Gündoğan’s technique that creates the opener- it’s the intelligence and awareness to notice that Haaland’s gravity has opened up more space for him to receive the ball and score.

There are two elements to this:

1. The awareness of space

2. Running into the box at the right time

The goal against Leeds encompasses these two points perfectly. Gündoğan scans his surroundings, and notices two men on Haaland. This gives him the opportunity to make a run and disorganize the defence, leaving one marker confused.

Late runs from deep don’t just require intelligence, but timing. One needs to have the ability to ‘smell’ a goal. The hunger, desire, and pausa to arrive at the right place and right time, are overlooked qualities. And Gündoğan has these things in abundance.

Unicorn?

It is rare to find an all-phase specialist like İlkay Gündoğan- a player capable of carrying the ball in any part of the pitch. An enchanting dribbler who can see everything that is around him, manipulating space and overcoming obstacles with his clever feints, thinking, and movement without the ball. His influence on this City side as a glue-like presence has become recognised over the years, and should he leave, it will be Manchester City who miss him.