Ilkay Gündogan has played virtually no part for Galatasaray this season. This is causing frustration – and that was evident on Saturday in a remarkable off-the-cuff remark.
Ilkay Gündogan has been playing for Galatasaray since 2025 – but the Gelsenkirchen-born player has not really managed to make his mark on the Bosphorus. The playmaker hasn’t played a major role at Cim Bom, partly due to some teething problems. Nevertheless, he at least featured regularly in his first season (eight Champions League appearances, 24 league matches, coming on as a substitute 12 times and being substituted 15 times), but that has changed completely this season. The 35-year-old, whose contract expires in the summer, has been relegated to the bench.
In the league, he only came on from the bench shortly before the end of the opening matchday in the 2–2 draw against Corum; in the Champions League, he was also only brought on late in the game in Lisbon. In total, the player with 82 caps for Germany has so far managed just eleven minutes on the pitch for the Turkish serial champions, who currently sit second in the Süper Lig table. Cim Bom are level on points with surprise leaders Amed SK, but have a poorer goal difference.
“I’m not playing”
For Gündogan, the situation is far from satisfactory. Unsurprisingly, this is causing frustration for a player of his calibre – and this was clearly evident on Saturday following Galatasaray’s 3–1 victory over Kasimpasa. In the tunnel leading to the changing rooms, Gündogan was asked by a reporter whether he was ready for the upcoming Champions League clash against FC Barcelona next Tuesday. His reply was as curt as it was telling. “I’m not playing – so why should I be ready?”
Too slow, no impact on the game – these are just two of the criticisms levelled at the former DFB captain. Yet he had actually been brought in to lead the team with his experience. But then everything changed. Manager Okan Buruk prefers to rely on other players in central midfield, such as Gabriel Sara (27) or Lucas Torreira (30), who, incidentally, was shown a red card against Kasimpasa.
This at least increases Gündogan’s chances of featuring in the upcoming league match in Ankara against Genclerbirligi on Saturday (3 pm). Whether he has a realistic chance of featuring against his former club Barcelona (46 appearances in the 2023/24 season) seems highly doubtful.
