Gundogan is good to go after Man City debut

Ilkay Gundogan’s Man City debut went off without a hitch and the German midfielder hopes that is an indicator of things to come.

The former Borussia Dortmund star joined City in the summer but after a knee operation at the end of last season  had to wait to make his competitive bow.

It came in their Champions League opener against Borussia Monchengladbach and Gundogan hit the ground running as City cruised to a 4-0 win.

Sergio Aguero took the headlines with a hat-trick but Gundogan won a penalty and picked passes with ease in a consummate debut.

But with the likes of Kevin de Bruyne, David Silva and Fernandinho all competing for playing time in a crowded central midfield – Gundogan knows he will need to be at his best throughout a long season for Pep Guardiola’s men.

“I can also play a more defensive role, but this is our formation at the moment, with Fernandinho as number six and David and Kevin as eight and ten,” he said.

“David was out and I played there against Gladbach – it’s a quite good position.

“There are so many incredible, talented players, but it’s a long season with so many games and we want to compete in all competitions.

“It gives you a good feeling having so many good players around you – you can only profit from that.

“We have big targets this season so we need these players, and we still have injured players like Vincent Kompany to come back.”