Manchester City F.C. defender John Stones sends a clear message to 33-year-old midfielder Ilkay Gundogan after his second Man City debut against Ipswich Town (4-1)

Ilkay Gundogan wore a Manchester City shirt at the Etihad Stadium during his team’s 4-1 win over Ipswich Town. The fans cheered as if the home team had scored a last-second winner.

So happy was everyone inside the stadium that Gundogan thanked the City fans for their friendly welcome on Saturday.

After Mateo Kovacic got hurt, it looked like the Manchester City player would come on sooner than he did.

Rodri wasn’t in the team for the game, so Gundogan seemed like the best choice to replace the hurt Croatian.

But John Stones was brought on and told to protect the back four instead.

It didn’t look like Stones didn’t belong as a holding midfielder against Ipswich. He was in charge.

On the Man City star’s Instagram post after Ipswich’s win, Stones says something.

The English player played his first minutes during the 2024–2025 season, after having a long break over the summer.

It will be interesting to see if the £250,000-a-week worker gets to start his first game of the season on Saturday against West Ham United.

Along the same lines, Gundogan came off the bench against Kieran McKenna’s team, so he could also start against London.

For now, the most important thing to know about Pep Guardiola’s team is that their star midfielder is back.

Stones wrote on his Instagram post after his team beat Ipswich in their second league game of the season that he was thrilled that Gundogan had re-signed with Manchester City.

The 30-year-old said, “Welcome home,” and then added a heart-eye emoji.

The way John Stones reacted shows how Man City felt when Ilkay Gundogan came back.
The fact that Stones, one of Manchester City’s most experienced players, seems to be very happy about Gundogan’s return to the club shows how things are going in the team.

The 33-year-old’s choice to sign with the Premier League winners again seems to have made everyone happier in the locker room.

Gundogan seems to be close with most of the players in the locker room because he ruled club football with most of them.

The players should also know that the addition of the former Barcelona midfielder isn’t just a happy story; he brings a lot of quality and experience to the team that is very important.

Gundogan is one of the best players in the world, and all the best players want to play with each other.