Midfielder’s metamorphosis into a difference maker for Pep Guardiola has come without the smallest hint of ego attached
It might have felt slightly too good to be true for Ilkay Gündogan when, in the 71st minute of the FA Cup final, he gobbled up a rebound to beat David de Gea for the third time that afternoon. He wheeled away anyway but the flag went up immediately and there were no complaints from the scorer, who smiled knowingly and could reflect that he had not quite returned quickly enough from an offside position.
Stan Mortensen’s record as the only player to complete a hat-trick in this fixture at Wembley was preserved and it was one of those rare moments, in recent months, when Gündogan’s timing had erred from perfection.
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