German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is reportedly set to make a sensational return to Manchester City on a one-year deal, just a year after leaving the Premier League champions for Barcelona.

Gundogan, who spent seven seasons at City and won 14 trophies, including the Champions League, has had a difficult spell at the Catalan side, scoring just five goals in 51 appearances and experiencing his first trophy-less season in seven years.

The move comes as a shock, with City maintaining all summer that they were happy with their current squad and any transfer business would come from an unexpected developing situation later in the window. However, Pep Guardiola intimated last week that he was hoping for a reinforcement following Julian Alvarez’s move to Atletico Madrid.

Gundogan, who was Guardiola’s first signing as manager at City, would fit the bill of being capable of playing anywhere in central midfield. The Germany international was left out of manager Hansi Flick’s side to take on Valencia over the weekend, accelerating his desire for a move.

According to Fabrizio Romano, an agreement has been reached between the two sides, with Gundogan set to leave Barcelona for free. The midfielder has already said his goodbyes to staff and teammates in Spain and is due in Manchester on a private jet this afternoon.

Gundogan’s potential departure from Catalonia only arose over the weekend, with the 33-year-old already having interest from clubs in Turkey and Saudi Arabia, including Al Nassr, home of Cristiano Ronaldo, Aymeric Laporte, and Sadio Mane.

Gundogan spent seven seasons with City and won a whopping 14 trophies at the Etihad

The German international was Guardiola’s first signing as manager at City and spent seven years at the Etihad, ending as captain during the Treble campaign in 2023. Gundogan met up with his old teammates and manager before a pre-season friendly between the two sides in Orlando just over a fortnight ago.

Barcelona have brought in Euro 2024 star Dani Olmo from RB Leipzig in the same position as Gundogan, but the German’s departure would free up €14m (£12m) in the club’s fair play budget, allowing them to reinvest 70 per cent of these savings into new signings.

The Spanish outfit have been battling with money issues for a number of seasons and were fined £434,000 for breaching UEFA’s financial rules last year.

Gundogan is set to add to the 14 trophies he won at City, and his return would be a major boost for Guardiola’s side as they look to continue their dominance in the Premier League.