‘A bit sad’ - Ilkay Gundogan explains Erling Haaland’s act of kindness during Man City vs Leeds United

Ilkay Gundogan has revealed his conversation with Erling Haaland before his penalty miss against Leeds United.

Gundogan put on a superb performance to help Manchester City defeat the struggling Whites, scoring two first-half goals to more or less wrap up proceedings early on. Though, Rodrigo Moreno would go on to score late on to give City a small scare after a number of missed chances.

One of those missed chances was a penalty, which was won by Phil Foden and missed by Gundogan.

Haaland or Riyad Mahrez usually take penalties for City, but with Gundogan on a hat-trick, it was decided that the German would get the chance from the spot, only for him to hit the post. Leeds went on to score shortly after, and Pep Guardiola was left livid, although with City boss was much more relaxed about the situation after full-time.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Gundogan detailed Haaland’s act of kindness, confirming the Norwegian will be back on penalty duties from here on out.

“I saw Erling with the ball, looking for me and telling me to take it,” said the German midfielder. “I asked him a couple of times 'are you sure?'. He was sure and confident to give me the ball. In the end, I grabbed the ball and I wish I would have scored. The sad thing is now, looking back afterwards, the disappointment of failing to score the penalty is higher and more than actually scoring the two goals and winning the game.

“It's kinda a bit sad to be honest, but it is what it is. It's an experience that we are a bit richer with that we can hopefully apply for the next few games, and I'm 100% certain that Erling will step up for the next penalty again."