Gundogan: German coaches need to take more risks

Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan believes the cautiousness of coaches is to blame for the Bundesliga's lack of title tension.

Gundogan, who is nearing the end of his second season in the Premier League, was part of the Borussia Dortmund team that were crowned German champions in 2011-12 under Jurgen Klopp.

Bayern Munich have since reasserted their dominance by winning six straight titles for the first time in the club's history, the latest secured with five games to spare.

Thomas Muller described the disparity at the top as "regrettable" and his concern is matched by Germany team-mate Gundogan, who says teams are too quick to resort to the safety of long balls.

"What I miss a bit - but I'm perhaps spoiled with Pep Guardiola - is that teams in the game find solutions," Gundogan told Sport1.

"As soon as you got a bit of pressure [in the Bundesliga], the ball was knocked forward for a long time.

6 May 2018

"Players always try to implement what the coaches tell them, and a coach has to come up with an idea.

"Coach education in Germany is actually very good, but I do not understand why many coaches do not have the guts to push through an idea when they have lost two or three times."