There was a point where everyone thought Ilkay Gundogan would not be a Manchester City player this season.
His contract expires next May and there was a line of thinking that the German fancied a fresh challenge to see out his glorious playing days. However, one wedding and a title-winning brace later, Pep Guardiola's first signing is still fighting to win even more silverware in Sky Blue.
Gundogan's influence on City cannot be understated. The midfielder is not always the one to steal the limelight - that's saved for the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva - but just one goal away from 50 in East Manchester highlights his pivotal role in the club's success under Guardiola.
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Even removing his heroics against Aston Villa on the final day of last season, Gundogan has popped up in the biggest moments to power his team to glory. In 2020/21, without the presence of a recognised striker, the midfielder scored a career-best 13 Premier League goals from midfield - two of them in City's first win at Anfield since 2003.
City missed Gundogan's presence on Saturday against the same opposition, and it's probably a timely reminder to Guardiola of his importance.
The Catalan boss did have reasons to leave him out. Gundogan - alongside John Stones and Phil Foden - were unable to travel with the squad on their short pre-season tour of the US and missed a large chunk of senior football as a consequence.
The trio did join the EDS side in Croatia, but throwing any of them back in to the mix from the start against Liverpool would have been a baptism of fire. He did, however, make a brief 17-minute cameo from the bench, but there wasn't enough time to make a significant impact.
His introduction was likely to bring some calmness to proceedings. City, for their own standards, were poor on the ball and struggled to string passes together in the fluent manner we have all become so accustomed to. Maybe it was a bit of pre-season rustiness, but Guardiola will not want any more of that when the Premier League season kicks off on Sunday.
City have lost a lot of quick, dynamic attackers over the summer and will have to slightly adapt the way they play to suit Erling Haaland. Slow and methodical play could be something Guardiola opts for in this case, so Gundogan is the perfect man for that particular midfield role.
Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne formed a really effective trio towards the end of last season, but with games about to come thick and fast, the German international could be the go-to man against West Ham.
Time will tell, but Gundogan could play a key role in any of City's potential success this season - especially if he can control the tempo of games like Saturday.
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