Man City hero Ilkay Gundogan finally receives FA Cup medal after missing out to little-known star who didn’t make squad
ILKAY GUNDOGAN set his sights on a winners’ medal in Saturday’s Champions League final — having been denied one on the Wembley balcony.
Skipper and man-of-the-match Gundogan and fellow Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne missed out on getting their gongs from Prince William after beating United 2-1 in the FA Cup final.
The Prince of Wales seemed to then explain to the pair that he had run out of them.
Keeper Ederson later passed a medal to De Bruyne as they celebrated but two-goal hero Gundogan missed out completely.
Instead, Spanish left-back Sergio Gomez, who was not even in the squad, was seen wearing a medal in the official photos.
Teams get 20 medals for the starting XI and nine subs, plus one for the manager, on Cup final day.
Clubs are given an extra 19 to ensure all staff get a medal — including players not in the matchday squad — and Gundogan got his later that day.
After lifting a second trophy in a fortnight, he said: “Now for the one we really want.”
The City captain also played a key role in their Prem triumph, scoring twice against both Leeds and Everton in the run-in.
But he admitted the Champions League is the one they covet most — as they prepare to tackle Inter Milan in Istanbul.
Gundogan said: “What we have done in the last few months is amazing and obviously we already have two titles. But we know that we want this one even more than all the other ones before — and that is our target for next week.”
Asked if he was doing weight training to help lift all this silverware, he smiled: “My arms are naturally a bit pumped up. I feel privileged! So, extra effort is not needed.
“But this feels great, it feels special to lift this trophy and hopefully I can do it one more time.”
Gundogan, 32, is now set to agree a new deal with City to stay beyond the end of this season.
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The German, who got the fastest goal in FA Cup final history after 12 seconds, knows what City must do to beat Inter.
He added: “It is about doing the same things we’ve done for the last two weeks. We don’t have to do anything special.
“The simplicity of doing our things makes us special. It is about putting effort into the training sessions, preparing ourselves as well as possible and winning the game.”