Ilkay Gundogan stirred things up after Barcelona’s El Clasico loss with a statement in which he expressed his surprise that there had not been a stronger reaction of rage and anger within the team after the stoppage-time defeat to Real Madrid.
Barça lost 1-2 to Real Madrid at Estadi Lluis Companys on Saturday afternoon with two second-half goals from Jude Bellingham condemning the reigning champions to a defeat.
What did Gundogan say?
Gundogan, who was on target for Barcelona on the afternoon, did not mince his words after the match as he criticised the locker room for their reaction following the defeat.
“I come from the dressing room and obviously people are disappointed, but after such an important game and an unnecessary result, I would like to see more anger and disappointment. And this is part of the problem,” he said.
“More emotions have to come out when you lose and when you know you can play better and do better in certain situations and you don’t react. This then carries over to the pitch. We have to take a big step forward in that respect because otherwise, Real Madrid or even Girona are going to get away.
“I didn’t come here to lose these kinds of games or to allow these gaps to open up. I also have a responsibility as a senior player not to allow the team to let these things happen. We need resilience,” Gundogan added.
What led to Gundogan’s outburst?
Now, Mundo Deportivo have collected information from sources within the Barcelona dressing room which gives an insight into what led to Gundogan lashing out in the manner he did at his own team.
Some suggested that, despite the team being a committed group, the German could have sensed a feeling of regret and sadness rather than aggression or anger after the game.
The 33-year-old may even have detected a certain conformism, given that Barça had been weakened by the absence of Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, and Sergi Roberto and the lack of pace of Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, and Jules Kounde.
Meanwhile, another source suggested that the German sees a very healthy group of players but a lack of strong leadership.
Another insider told MD that Gundogan was disappointed with how Barcelona allowed Real Madrid back in the game, lacking aggression on the pitch in the latter stages.
Either way, Gundogan’s statements, even though they came as a surprise to some in the locker room, were largely taken with positivity.