Pep Guardiola is hopeful that Ilkay Gundogan can continue his excellent start to the season after protecting him against Crystal Palace.
Gundogan, who has been voted as the new club captain this season, is into the final year of his current contract at the Etihad but has started the first three Premier League games of the season and has contributed both goals and assists to the team. While the midfielder was left out of the starting lineup against Crystal Palace, he came off the bench to provide Erling Haaland with the ball that got him his hat-trick.
Rather than preferring other players for that selection, Guardiola explained he instead opted to look after Gundogan after the 31-year-old was not fully fit ahead of the game. Having sensed that the star has begun the season in particularly good form, the manager hopes that measuring his minutes can ensure he can have the biggest contribution possible.
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"Another player has been here with me many years together, and the impact for the team is always positive. Especially this season I had the feeling that he started really well," said Guardiola.
"Last game he had some niggles in his leg before Crystal Palace and I didn’t want to take risks for the amount of games that we have. He could have played but I didn't want to take risks. He has been so important so far not just in terms of goals and assists but many, many things.
"Gundo has been so important, like Kevin and Bernardo and many other players."
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