ILKAY GUNDOGAN will wait to see if Barcelona harden up their interest before deciding on his Manchester City future.
The German international has enjoyed an outstanding season but has just two years to run on his existing deal at the Etihad.
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Ilkay Gundogan is stalling over a new Man City deal because of Barcelona’s interest in him[/caption]
So City will look to either tie him to a new long-term contract or cash in on him during the close season.
The former Borussia Dortmund man, 30, has spent the last five years at City and was Pep Guardiola’s first signing.
He remains happy at the club but has also made no secret of his admiration for Barca in the past.
Gundogan spent hours watching the likes of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and current superstar Lionel Messi.
And he is aware that the Catalan giants have been monitoring his situation in recent months.
Their failure to land Gini Wijnaldum on a free transfer from Liverpool means they will have to step up their search elsewhere.
For now, Gundogan will focus on the Euros and is happy to keep his options open while on international duty.
Guardiola is looking to shuffle his midfield resources as he looks to make room for Aston Villa skipper Jack Grealish.
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But he would prefer to keep the £20.4 million ace – who finished as the champions’ top scorer last season.
Gundogan recently hit headlines for donating all of his £250,000 Premier League bonus to his childhood team.
The midfielder gave the full amount of his extra cash to Hessler 06 to help fund a new artificial pitch.
Gundogan spent ten years with Hessler 06 before switching to Bochum and then going professional.
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