Pep almost pays for Erling gift to German BIG-MATCH VERDICT

IT might take him a while but Pep Guardiola will eventually forgive Ilkay Gundogan.

Not for missing the penalty that could have made this victory completely stressfree – Guardiola will happily accept that can happen to anyone – but for taking it in the first place.

Two up and with six minutes of regulation time remaining, Pascal Struijk’s offence against Phil Foden gave Manchester City the chance to coast to the finishing line.

But Erling Haaland did what he thought was the generous, lovely thing to do – and handed the ball to Gundogan so that his captain could complete his hat-trick.

The shot hit the post and, in the technical area, something similar hit the fan.

But after Rodrigo’s goal a couple of minutes later proved to be only a consolation for Sam Allardyce’s side, the job was done for City.

And the irony is that the man largely responsible for doing that job was a certain Gundogan.

Against a side bossed by Allardyce, Guardiola (below) knew he needed a lockpicker, a player who can see round corners, a footballer who passes with surgical precision.

And in the quiet genius that is Gundogan, Pep had just the man.

“A footballer defined perfectly,” Guardiola said of Gundogan recently.

And that is Gundogan summed up perfectly.

The first official signing of Guardiola’s City era, there is probably no-one who has contributed so much to the club’s success in return for so relatively little acclaim.

Remember, it was Gundogan’s introduction three-quarters into the closing game of last season against

Aston Villa that, essentially, won the title for City.

Normally, Guardiola would not turn a hair at the prospect of a player walking away from his project and City will cope and continue to prosper if Gundogan, 32, decides his career needs a final challenge.

His contract expires soon, he has been strongly linked with a move to Barcelona and no City follower or team-mate would begrudge him a lucrative switch to a beautiful city.

But they would miss him. Confronted by Big Sam’s defensive ranks, Gundogan produced a first-half masterclass that was not just about his two exquisite strikes. In those opening 45 minutes, Gundogan completed 92 passes, which was almost double the amount completed by the entire Leeds side.

But it was those two exquisite strikes that symbolised everything that is classy about Gundogan.

He converted his chances with the sort of composure that was missing from Haaland’s game, the Norwegian missing a series of sitters.

Leeds avoiding a good hiding was not only down to Haaland’s wastefulness but also to the limited exertions of a side with their eyes on Real Madrid on Tuesday night.

City should have won this at a canter but there is a chance they could now win the title at a canter. If Arsenal lose at St James’ Park today, Guardiola’s men could clinch the title with two matches to spare. And if they need a penalty to win it, you know who will and who will not be taking it.