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Borussia Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gundogan’s current contract expires in 2017 and as yet the 25-year-old has shown no sign that he is interested in renewing. It’s led to a situation where Dortmund will likely have to chose this summer whether they cash in on the German international while they still can or risk losing him on a free in a year.
That in turn has led to a slew of clubs being linked with a move for the versatile central star. And if a midfielder who developed into one of the best under Jürgen Klopp is going to be linked with a move—and potentially a cut-rate move at that—you’d better believe Liverpool will end up amongst the clubs supposedly in the running to land him in a few months.
Along with Liverpool, he has also been linked with many of the usual suspects. In England, that means Arsenal and Manchester City have already been mentioned a fair bit. In Italy, Juventus are rumoured to be willing to splash the cash to bring him on. And now, in Spain, Barcelona have been added to the mix, with Catalan paper Sport saying they’re after him.
As yet, every one of the rumours appears just that—uninformed and speculative, journalists linking a big name player whose contact is running down with every club that might reasonably be after him. Give it another month and it’s likely Real Madrid, PSG, Chelsea, and Manchester United will at least be seriously considering a move for Gundogan, too.
Still, as far as rumours go, that Jürgen Klopp might want the 25-year-old is hardly an unreasonable proposition. Neither is the idea that his presence at Liverpool might give the club a leg up, especially if the club can manage an unlikely finish to the season that gets them back into the Champions League via either the top four or the Europa League.
Head to head against Barcelona, though, that’s still probably a race the Reds lose even if everything else falls their way. If rumours of Barcelona interest are overstated, though, it could be enough of an edge for Liverpool to land Gundogan ahead of Juventus and their English rivals. If there’s anything to the rumours, that is.