Serie A giants AS Roma are reportedly interested in signing German midfield maestro Ilkay Gundogan from Manchester City this summer.
According to Italian daily Leggo, as relayed by TuttoMercatoWeb, Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma have set sights on Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan. The German midfielder can reportedly be offloaded this summer, and the Serie A giants are eager to pounce on the opportunity to sign him.
Gundogan has just a year remaining on his contract with Manchester City, whom he joined in the 2016 summer transfer window from Borussia Dortmund. The midfielder has had trophy-laden six seasons at the Etihad, where he has four Premier League titles, four EFL Cups and an FA Cup.
The 31-year-old was instrumental in their latest league win, scoring twice in five minutes after coming on in the second half, helping Manchester City complete a comeback against Aston Villa to deny Liverpool the title. But he was not one of the first names on the team sheet throughout the campaign.
Gundogan started 20 Premier League matches for Pep Guardiola’s side but still managed to score eight goals and provide three assists from a central midfield role. The 2020/21 season was his best in a Manchester City shirt in terms of output as he scored 17 and assisted five goals in the campaign.
However, as per the report by Leggo, Manchester City have deemed Gundogan surplus to requirements and with just a year remaining on his contract, they are eager to sell the German midfield maestro this summer rather than lose him for free next year.
Roma have now emerged as a possible option, with Jose Mourinho aiming to add yet another Premier League player to his side. The Portuguese tactician bought Tammy Abraham from Chelsea last season, and to great success as he finished the season with 27 goals across competitions. The Serie A giants also signed goalkeeper Rui Patricio from Wolves and Ainsley Maitland-Niles on loan from Arsenal.
Mourinho also has former Premier League players Chris Smalling and Henrikh Mkhitaryan in his squad, and Gundogan could be another addition. The Giallorossi will have no problem matching the German’s salary at Manchester City. The 31-year-old reportedly earns €7 million per year at the Eithad.
The former Chelsea boss was forced to sign midfielder Sergio Oliviera on loan for the second half of the recently-concluded season. The Serie A giants completed the signing of Nemanja Matic from Manchester United on a free transfer to solve the issue.
