When Nuri Sahin left Dortmund for Real Madrid in the summer
of 2011, a lot of people were expecting Dortmund to fail in their quest for
titles. Sahin was the fulcrum; the heart-beat of Dortmund’s playing style. He
was so influential in Dortmund Bundesliga winning 2010-11 season that he was
voted the best player in the Bundesliga – in a league which had a world-class
midfielder in the mould of Bastian Schweinsteiger.
Replacing the best player of a title-winning team is hard,
especially with a not-so-big budget. But Jurgen Klopp had already decided who
he would sign to replace Sahin: Ilkay Gundogan.
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| Ilkay Gundogan |
Replacing your best player with a relatively unknown €4.5m
signing is a gamble; Klopp took it and it paid off. Klopp’s judgement of the
then exciting-but-obscure talent was as accurate at Juninho’s free-kicks.
And now, after a little under 2 years, Sahin, who’s back at
Dortmund, finds himself playing second fiddle to the man who was bought to
replace him in probably one of the biggest ironies of life.
In his first few months at Dortmund, Gundogan drew more skepticism
than praise. However, in the business end of the season, he became the focal
point of Dortmund’s play – an epiphany about his talent could be seen amongst
fans. His distribution of the ball, flow of movements and drive helped Dortmund
to win the Bundesliga for the second time in a row – a feat which many thought
wouldn’t be achievable after the sale of Kagawa and Sahin.
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| "Time to make him my b***h!" | Gundogan in action |
In his second season, he just got better. Even though
Dortmund haven’t been able to retain the Bundesliga title this year, they have
had a lot of positives and one of them is their performances in the Champions
League.
Drawn in the group of death against Ajax, Real Madrid and Manchester
City, a lot were expecting City and Real to qualify with the latter topping the
group. Klopp, however, had other plans. Dortmund not only beat the other 3
teams, but also stayed unbeaten and managed to top the group in an outstanding
fashion.
And Gundogan was one of the key reasons for that.
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| Battling for the ball against Ozil |
While Lewandowski, Reus and Gotze get most of the plaudits
because of their flashy style of play, it is Gundogan who does his work quietly
and avoids the limelight.
Against Real Madrid in the first leg of the semi-final,
Gundogan was absolutely unstoppable. The way he glided past Real Madrid players
– who are established players of their respective international teams – with his
deft touches, passed the ball around, pressed with altruism…it was mesmerizing.
He made Football look so easy; it was like poetry in motion; as pleasing to
watch as listening to Tim Charles play violin while sitting under a tree near a
lake. With his first touch, he got away from the nearest opponent and with his
second he passed the ball forward – a perfect player for a team that like to
break quickly.
On one instance, he went past Khedira with his first touch
and then took the ball away from Ramos with his second and then hit a venomous
shot at goal with his left-foot which almost went in, but
Diego Lopez came to Real’s rescue. Just 2 touches in less than 2 seconds undid
two of Real’s best players; that was how good he was playing last night in a
nutshell.
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| Just a spectator - Ozil keeps looking as Gundogan wreaks havoc |
Regardless of how tight the space is, he seems calm and
confident, that no matter how crammed it is, he will still find a way out. Such
quality is very rarely found these days. His mobility and speed of thought and
movement – he reads the game a split-second faster than his opponent – lets him
get out of the tightest of spaces with the ball at his feet. Also, his surging
runs to the opponent’s box gives Dortmund an extra dimension in attack.
In the 35 games he has played in all competitions this
season, he has completed 1.8 dribbles-per-game – a very good stat for a
deep-lying playmaker. He also has made 0.8 key passes-per-game – not outstanding
by any means, but certainly a good stat for someone who plays in front of the
defense. Also, he attempts 56.1 passes-per-game with a success rate of 86.1%;
not so flattering, but considering the way Dortmund play – quick breaks and not
possession Football – these are really impressive stats.
Gundogan’s greatest asset is his long-range passing. Against
Real in the first leg of the semis, he executed 7 accurate long-balls. He averages
6.1 successful long balls-per-game this season – that is a testament to his
exquisite passing range. He’s also elegant defensively – averaging 2.4 tackles
and 2.2 interceptions-per-game this season, he shows that he is very adept at
breaking down the opposition’s play.
A player who can break oppositions’ play, get away from the
nearest opponent within a touch and start an attack with the next touch – what else
could you ask from a deep-lying-playmaker? Add to that his ability to burst forward and create
maelstroms in the opposition defense and we have a complete package.
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| Surprise scoring threat | Gundogan celebrates after scoring |
The second leg of the semi-final is just under a week away
and Real find themselves in a position where they must score 3 goals without
reply. With the amount of attacking talent Real have, it might not be that hard
to score 3 at home against Dortmund. However, given Real’s erratic defending of
late, and Dortmund’s firepower in attack, they have to make sure they close
down Ilkay Gundogan and thus cutting down the supply line to Gotze, Reus and
Lewandowski – something which Dortmund players successfully did on Xabi Alonso.
Easier said than done, though, as Gundogan’s mobility and quickness in movement
make it really hard to close him down.
From obscurity to becoming the focal point of team that beat
Real Madrid 4-1 in a Champions League semi-final – Gundogan’s rise has been
nothing short of meteoric. A lot of credit should be given to Klopp for
trusting and showing faith in him – and Gundogan repaid him thoroughly by
playing as he is capable of.
There might be some compunction amongst other managers for
missing out on him – especially looking at how much he cost Dortmund. Klopp,
however, has the last laugh. Gundogan is still young, only 22, and has a bright
future ahead of him. He is still in his development years and can definitely
get better and someday, if the current trend of the Bundesliga continues, play
for Bayern Munich.
