Ilkay Gundogan dismantles his Barcelona teammates, telling sent-off Ronald Araujo he “killed the game” and lamenting that “no one came out” to defend PSG’s leveler in a brutally honest interview.
- Ilkay Gundogan lashed out at his Barcelona teammates after PSG defeat
- Barcelona were eliminated from the Champions League by PSG on Tuesday.
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Ilkay Gundogan has criticized his Barcelona teammates after their disappointing performance against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday night.
The Catalan giants crashed out of the Champions League after losing 4-1 to PSG in the second leg of their quarter-final.
Barcelona entered the tie at the Camp Nou with a 3-2 lead and increased their advantage through Raphinha in the 12th minute of the match.
However, things changed when Ronald Araujo was sent off for a foul on Bradley Barcola, allowing Ousmane Dembele, Vitinha and Kylian Mbappe to score for PSG.
Gundogan felt like Barcelona “gave the game the easy way” and said Araujo deserved to be sent off.
Ilkay Gundogan (pictured above) criticized his Barcelona teammates after their disappointing performance against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday night.
The Catalan giants crashed out of the Champions League after losing 4-1 to Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg of their quarter-final.
Speaking after the match, Gundogan said CBS: ‘I’m disappointed (with the result). I’m actually very disappointed because we were in such a good position.
“Not just after the first leg, but after the first goal we scored. Everything was in our hands and we distributed it in the simplest way possible.
He finished by saying: “We just gave it to Paris Saint-Germain and that’s the most disappointing part.”
Gundogan then discussed Araujo’s red card, saying he should have let his goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen deal with Barcola instead of bringing him down.
Gundogan said: “If he (Araujo) fouled him (Barcola), I guess it’s a red card. I haven’t seen the replay, I don’t know. You probably know this better than me.
“It’s hard to say. You know, in these kinds of crucial moments, you have to be sure to get the ball back.
“If you don’t (if you’re going to get the ball), and again, I don’t know if he touched the ball or not, you need to stay away.
“I would rather concede a goal there or give the striker 1v1. However, the ball was played quite far, so I don’t even know if he would have reached the ball.
“But maybe let our goalkeeper save us or even concede a goal, because bringing a player down so early just kills your game.”
Gundogan felt Barcelona “gave the game away in the easiest way” and said Ronald Araujo deserved to be sent off for fouling Bradley Barcola.
Gundogan also complained that no one came out to close down Vitinha for PSG’s second goal
Gundogan also spoke about Vitinha’s goal, saying his teammates needed to be more proactive in coming out towards the ball.
Asked about Barcelona’s second goals, the former Manchester City star said: “Again, it’s another mistake. We have to get out of there. We can’t let him shoot because he was so free .
“It was nothing we hadn’t trained before. The player closest to the ball must go out. There were three of us and Vitinha was the fourth man. Someone has to come out.
“No one did it or they did it too late. It was a good shot and they scored their second goal. But that wasn’t necessary at all. It’s too late now.
