Ilkay Gundogan reveals Leeds United feelings but names margin Whites should have lost by at City

Gundogan's brace had Pep Guardiola's odds-on title favourites 2-0 up at the interval of Saturday's Premier League clash against the visiting Whites who were subjected to a barrage of home pressure in the first half.

The pattern of the game largely continued after the break despite slightly more forays forward from Leeds but City were handed a golden opportunity to bag a third goal when Pascal Struijk upended Phil Foden for an 84th-minute penalty. Regular spot kick taker Erling Haaland handed the ball to the hat-trick seeking Gundogan who then saw his penalty tipped on to the post by Whites keeper Joel Robles.

Just one minute later, Leeds pulled a goal back through Rodrigo for a strike which City skipper Gundogan admitted led to a nervy and exciting conclusion to a game in which Guardiola's side could have been out of sight. Despite praise for United's defensive work, German international midfielder Gundogan felt his team ultimately should have won by at least a few clear goals.

"It was a good performance," said 32-year-old Gundogan to mancity.com "Unfortunately we were not able to transmit that performance into the result. It feels like this game should have been won by at least three goals difference just looking at the chances and then conceding quite an easy goal obviously made the last five to ten minutes quite exciting, maybe even a little bit nervous for us which again really should have not happened.

"But I think we reacted quite well to that goal that we have conceded. We didn't concede anything else, we played in a mature way, kept the ball, wasted a few minutes and it's another experience that we take on."

He added: "Probably, the best warning is today. But we have an experienced team and have had these kinds of run-ins in recent years. Leeds made it difficult for us, defended really well. But the way we approached the game from the start was really good. We created a lot of chances and the only negative was that we were not able to score a third."

Reflecting on what happened with his penalty, Gundogan explained: “The moment Erling grabbed the ball, I was sure he was going to take it but he looked out for me. I checked with him a few times to make sure he was sure. He was certain to hand the ball to me.

“I was confident to score. I can't even remember if the keeper saved it or it was the post? We should have scored a third. This is sometimes how it is that they go on the counter and score. Things can change, momentum can shift. But we dealt quite well with it and deserved the three points."