Manchester City have seen numerous important players leave in recent years such as Sergio Aguero, David Silva and Vincent Kompany among others who have all been crucial to the club's previous domestic dominance.

Now that their latest Premier League season is almost over and the club have the chance to add another league title to their cabinet, the next summer transfer window is also close to opening.

While it has been confirmed that Fernandinho will be waving goodbye to the club after nine years of service, an update has emerged regarding the future of another important figure in the squad which will surely have Pep Guardiola buzzing.

What's the news?

According to a recent report from ESPN, the Citizens are "expecting" midfielder Ilkay Gundogan to remain at the club this summer after it was recently reported that he had been told by the club's hierarchy that he could leave.

The report also said that "sources close to the club insist the midfielder has not expressed a desire to leave and the expectation is that the 31-year-old will stay until at least the end of his deal in 2023."

Good news for Pep

Since joining the Manchester club back in the 2016 summer transfer window, the midfielder has gone on to make 252 appearances across all competitions.

In those appearances, the former Borussia Dortmund star has scored 47 goals, provided 33 assists and helped his side win several trophies in the process.

To further highlight the German's importance to City, out of the 11 Premier League games that he hasn't appeared in this season, Guardiola's side have dropped points in six of them.

This shows that the Citizens are arguably a better side with him in the team rather than out of it.

With that in mind and the fact that City will already have to be on the lookout to bring a new midfielder in to replace Fernandinho this summer, having Gundogan stay in the squad for another season will be a big weight off the club's shoulders

With the midfielder's current contract at the Etihad Stadium set to expire in the summer of 2023, it'll now be up to the club to decide when they discuss what the future could hold for the long-serving German.

In other news: Man City eyeing swoop for "immense" £60m "destroyer", he's better than Fernandinho