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Barcelona midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is set to leave the Catalan club for free, as per transfer expert Fabrizio Romano. The Germany international joined Barca on a free transfer after winning the treble with Pep Guardiola's Manchester City in the 2022-23 season.
According to Romano, Gundogan is likely to return to Manchester City, with Guardiola eager to have the midfielder back. Barcelona have also agreed to part ways with the midfielder while his agent is currently in the UK to sort out the terms of his new contract with City.
Following Romano's reports, Barca fans have voiced their opinions on X (formerly Twitter), expressing their frustration at the transfer news. Some of the popular reactions on X are as follows:
"We’re not serious, I swear," commented a fan on X.
"How did Barcelona fumble this? He's better than all their midfielders bar Pedri," wrote another.
"letting him go for free is weird man!" wrote another fan on X.
One fan quipped about Ilkay Gundogan coming from Manchester City to Barcelona only to go back to the Blues a year later. They commented:
"Manchester City replaced Gundogan with Gundogan."
"Man City is winning the Premier League in May 2025 with Gundogan saving them last matchday," predicted another fan.
Some other comments about the Ilkay Gundogan transfer news were as follows:
"Barcelona are going trophyless," announced another.
"what a joke of a club," inferred another individual on X.
Ilkay Gundogan's relationship with Barcelona dressing room was reportedly strained following his criticism of one player
According to a report by Mundo Deportivo, Ilkay Gundogan's relationship with the Catalan dressing room was strained after he publicly criticized Ronald Araujo. It came after the defender's controversial red card in the Champions League quarter-final defeat against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
In the 29th minute of the quarter-final second leg, Araujo received a straight red card following a reckless tackle on PSG's Bradley Barcola. The Uruguayan leaving the pitch was a body blow for the Catalan giant, who lost 4-1 (6-4 on aggregate) to bow out of the Champions League.
In the post-match press conference, Ilkay Gundogan expressed his disappointment for the loss and said:
"If you don't get it, and I don't know if he [Araujo] did, you have to stay away. I prefer to concede a goal there or to leave the striker one on one, even though he played the ball quite far ahead, so I don't know if he would reach the ball. But let the goalkeeper have a chance to save us or even concede a goal."
The German international added:
"To get a red card, to bring a player down so early, it just kills the game."
Gundogan's comments were reportedly not appreciated by the Barca dressing room. The German had to explain himself for his critical comments behind close doors the next day.
As per Mundo Deportivo, Gundogan's high salary at Barca is another key reason why the club is keen on his departure amid their well-known financial constraints. He earns around €360,577 per week, as per Capology.
