Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan rejected a reunion with Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
Manchester City ace Ilkay Gundogan has told Fantasy PL that he simply didn’t want to join Liverpool when Jurgen Klopp wanted to reunite with him.
Borussia Dortmund is where Klopp really made his name as a manager, and a host of players thrived and developed under his tutelage at Signal Iduna Park.
From Nuri Sahin to Robert Lewandowski, from Mats Hummels to Mario Gotze, Klopp played key role in the careers of many players – and Gundogan was one of them.
Klopp raided Nurnberg to sign Gundogan in 2011, and the midfielder racked up 12 goals in 117 games under Klopp, before they parted ways.
Klopp left Dortmund in 2015, joining Liverpool just months later, and Gundogan followed him to England just months later – but instead of joining Klopp at Anfield, Gundogan picked Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City instead, securing a £20million move to the Etihad Stadium.
The German has overcome injury and fitness problems to play 147 times for Guardiola, winning two Premier League titles with City, including beating Klopp’s Liverpool to last year’s title.
The rivalry between the two clubs has intensified due to their title battles, and it looks like Gundogan is set to see his former boss lift the Premier League title this season.
Now, Gundogan has opened up on his decision to join City instead of Liverpool, claiming that he just wanted to try something new rather than committing more years of his career to playing under Klopp, having already done that for four years.
“I believe in challenges in life and I always try to challenge myself first of all,” said Gundogan. “I feel like if I don’t challenge myself and get out of my comfort zone, I’m not going to change anything and won’t improve.”
“So I had a great four years with Jurgen and I love him as a person and a manager but I felt it was time for something else,” he added.
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