Gundogan had successful Barcelona medical but joined City instead: Here’s why
According to the Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, the 27-year-old had successfully cleared his medical with the La Liga giants. The midfielder was keen on joining the Catalan club three years ago.
The Camp Nou outfit’s interest in signing Gündoğan was just months after they won the treble – La Liga, Copa del Rey and the Champions League –in the 2014/15 season, under the guidance of Luis Enrique.
Barcelona had an opportunity to sign Gündoğan for €20 million and they had an agreement with Dortmund, the player’s former club. The former had a transfer ban, which restricted them from registering players until January 2016.
Gündoğan was open to the idea of joining Barcelona and waiting for six months to make his debut. However, Enrique decided against making a move for him and signed Arda Turan from Atletico Madrid for a reported feee of €35m.
The German went on to become Pep Guardiola’s first signing at City in 2016. He has already won the Carabao Cup with the English club and is on the course of winning the title this season.