Manchester City midfielder’s lifestyle change leaves Hugo Viana with huge transfer decision | OneFootball

Ilkay Gundogan has made lifestyle changes off the pitch to ensure his fitness record remains up to par as the German eyes a second year at Manchester City after returning from Barcelona last summer, as per a new report.

The 34-year-old endured a mixed bag of fortune in his first season back at the Etihad Stadium as Manchester City recorded a third-place Premier League finish, crashed out of the UEFA Champions League at the Round of 16 stage and lost the FA Cup final to Crystal Palace.

Gundogan, 34, was one of City’s best players in their historic 2022-23 treble winning season and captained the Blues to a maiden Champions League title – before joining Barcelona on a free transfer after coming to the end of his contract at the Etihad Stadium.

However, City have endured a significant squad shuffle under the stewardship of newly-appointed director of football this summer – evident from the early arrival(s) of Rayan Ait-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders, Marcus Bettinelli and Rayan Cherki.

After parting ways with long-serving midfielder Kevin De Bruyne – who has since joined Napoli on a two-year deal – the Blues are eyeing further changes to their squad between now and the end of the transfer window on September 1.

Trimming the wage bill and streamlining Guardiola’s bloated squad is a key priority for Viana and co as the summer window progresses, with Manchester City expected to witness a series of further first-team departures before the 2025-26 Premier League campaign begins in August.

Gundogan activated an automatic extension clause entered into his Manchester City contract in the closing months of the recent season, which will allow the former Germany international to stay on at the Etihad Stadium for another year.

In a new report, The Athletic’s Jordan Campbell has detailed how Gundogan has made changes to his lifestyle off the pitch to ensure his high standards and maintain what has been an impressive fitness record for the midfielder since he became Guardiola’s first signing at Manchester City in 2016.

It has been revealed that in the fall of 2024, Gundogan started working with a nutritionist and a personal chef to plan all his meals and cut out sugar altogether from his diet – with a firm motive of improving his performance as he navigated an increased competition for places.

Gundogan, who has attracted interest from Galatasaray this summer, is keen to stay at City so long as he will play an important role under Guardiola, who has added Reijnders and Nico Gonzalez to his midfield options in the last six months as Manchester City grappled with the absence of Ballon d’Or holder Rodri.

Reijnders’ arrival and early impact at the FIFA Club World Cup could signal a reduced role for Gundogan and certainly an increased rotation of places, though Manchester City’s desire for a greater share of goals coming in from midfield to support Erling Haaland next season is likely to bode well for Gundogan.

Having been one of Manchester City’s most reliable goalscoring outlets from midfield since his arrival from Borussia Dortmund, Rodri’s fresh injury concern is likely to see Reijnders occupy a deeper role in midfield in the early stages of the new campaign, which could well hand Gundogan the perfect chance to nail down his position in advanced midfield role.