Bundesliga star turn Gun-ning for the Premier League

Borussia Dortmund and Germany midfielder Ilkay Gundogan has told friends that he is open to a move to the Premier League, after returning to fitness following a troubling back injury that kept him out for the majority of last season.

The 24-year-old, when fit, is one of the best creative, box-to-box midfielders in world football and Real Madrid had a bid turned down for the player in 2012, when his club won the Bundesliga title.

“Real Madrid made an offer for me but my club refused it,” Gundogan confirmed.

“At the time I had two more seasons on my contract. But also, my injury wrecked everything. I couldn’t play for 14 months. Now I want to look forward and make up for lost time with sporting success,” he continued.

“Playing outside Germany is one of my big goals. If one day I leave here, I’d like to play in Spain or for one of the big teams in England.”

Manchester United, odds-on with Coral at 2/5 to secure a top four finish in the Premier League this term, have been linked in the past, and if they were to make a bid, likely in the summer if anything, it would without a doubt add more to their midfield.

Dortmund are unlikely to want to sell one of their best players, with Marco Reus and Mats Hummels constantly rumoured to be on the move, and having lost Mario Gotze and Robert Lewandowski over the past two seasons.

However, United do have potential makeweights to sweeten any deal. Gundogan is essentially an upgrade of new summer signing Ander Herrera, though with more energy to get up and down the pitch, so Jurgen Klopp could be persuaded if a package is put together. And that is all dependent on whether the Dortmund boss is still there, with reports regularly pitching him as the next manager of Arsenal, Manchester City, or whatever other club is convenient at the time, especially with Dortmund struggling this term.

Never one to shy away from in-vogue players, Jose Mourinho may be tempted to test Dortmund’s resolve, and there is no doubt that he could find room in his first XI for the player, alongside Nemanja Matic with Cesc Fabregas pushed further forward. Chelsea have positioned themselves nicely to dominate for the foreseeable future, and are 9/1 to remain unbeaten in the Premier League for the rest of the campaign.