Ilkay Gundogan is leading a charitable initiative to help the elderly and healthcare workers in his native Germany during the coronavirus crisis.
The Manchester City midfielder was quick to recognise the strain the Covid-19 pandemic had put on society and is fronting a shopping service for the vulnerable who are unable to get to supermarkets and gifting care packages to nursing staff who are working in intensive care units.
Gundogan was particularly keen to help people in Heinsberg, the worst affected area in Germany and near his former club Borussia Dortmund and his birthplace, Gelsenkirchen.
He also sent a video message of support to staff in a clinic in Nuremberg while pledging to visit them when he can.
He said: “I’ve done these things because I can identify with them. Heinsberg was pretty much the Corona outbreak in Germany and it’s not far from my hometown, so there’s a connection. Gelsenkirchen is my home and there was a possibility to do something so I did it.
“And Nuremberg, I’ve lived there for a long time, it was my first professional team. My former school principal contacted me. I like him a lot and I’m still in touch with him. We made a plan and did something.
“I’m a privileged person and I am grateful that I am able to help in those situations. There are many people who struggle, who don’t have a home or food. Not only during the coronavirus crisis. I was very happy to be able to help.”
The Germany international admitted he is finding it difficult to motivate himself, with football already suspended for more than a month and a June restart the best-case scenario.
Gundogan added: “It’s not so easy to motivate yourself these days every day when you are training. Maybe you can compare it to people who are working from home.
"For those people it’s also not the same as driving to work every day and then doing their jobs. You have to motivate yourself to do your work. Some days it’s harder than others.”
Gundogan has stayed in Manchester in the shutdown and finds it strange to see so few people in the heart of what is normally a busy city.
“I look out of the window, and I live in the city centre, it’s all quite empty,” he said. “You see a few people on bikes or walking, but always just groups of one or two. I try to go out every one or two days to get some fresh air.
"I’ll make coffee at home, take a bottle of water and get a little recharging in the sun.”
Gundogan is training, albeit remotely, with his compatriot Leroy Sane and is looking forward to the winger’s comeback.
Sane was injured in August’s Community Shield and Gundogan added: “We have the same fitness coach in Germany. Some days we do our exercises via FaceTime. It’s worked out well so far and we’re trying to be very focused.
"Leroy had already trained with the team and he had his comeback in sight, even though he still had a few minor things. But he was almost back at playing again.
"Especially for your psyche, it’s important to be able to play again after such a long time. He now has more time to figure out the minor problems he has.
Gundogan hopes he has found one positive from tough times with the postponement of Euro 2020 for a year giving Sane and Bayern Munich defender Niklas Sule more time to recover from injuries. “The current situation also has some good sides for these guys,” he said.
