FA Cup final hero Ilkay Gundogan has revealed that "nothing is decided yet" regarding his future at Manchester City.
The 32-year-old scored a brace to help the Citizens secure a 2-1 victory over rivals Manchester United in Saturday's showpiece event at Wembley Stadium, netting either side of a Bruno Fernandes penalty.
Gundogan scored the fastest-ever FA Cup final goal after just 12 seconds when he fired a stunning 25-yard volley into the top-right corner, surpassing the previous record held by former Everton striker Louis Saha, who netted after 25 seconds against Chelsea in 2009.
United restored parity just after the half-hour mark with a somewhat controversial penalty decision as VAR ruled that Jack Grealish has handled inside the area before Fernandes stepped up from 12 yards to send Stefan Ortega the wrong way.
Nevertheless, City regained the lead six minutes after the interval when Kevin De Bruyne picked out captain Gundogan on the edge of the area and he directed a bobbled volley beyond an outstretched David de Gea into the bottom-left corner.
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Gundogan momentarily thought that he had scored the first FA Cup final hat-trick since 1953 when he tapped home from close range, only to be ruled offside, and despite a late goalline scramble inside Man City's box, Pep Guardiola's men held on to keep their treble-winning hopes alive.
Gundogan, who has made several decisive contributions during his time at City, is facing an uncertain future at the club as his contract is due to expire at the end of this month.
The former Borussia Dortmund man has been linked with the likes of Barcelona and Arsenal in recent weeks, but it is thought that the midfielder will decide his future after the Champions League final on June 10.
Asked by BBC Sport if triumphs such as winning the FA Cup and Premier League would persuade him to stay at Man City, Gundogan said: "I don't need these kind of days to feel appreciated and feel special in this club.
"I know that and that is why I have been here seven years. Nothing is decided yet, we will see what will happen."
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On the final, Gundogan added: "To win a final is always special. Every trophy is special. This group deserves it. We played really well, second half was amazing and we deserved to lift another trophy.
"Obviously we know how we want to play the kick off and we aim to do that, to go long for Erling and try to get a second ball. It just placed amazingly for me and I just had to hit it. Obviously it was a quite good strike."
Guardiola heaped praise on Gundogan after the match, adding: "What a season he has had. The skills are there but he also had the mentality. He plays the big games like they are friendlies, he can cope with the pressure."
Gundogan, who was Guardiola's first signing at City back in 2016, has contributed with 60 goals and 40 assists in 303 appearances for the club across all competitions, including 11 strikes and seven assists in 50 games so far this season.
The German will be hoping to end the campaign on a high and lift one more piece of silverware when Man City lock horns with Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul next Saturday.
Oliver Thomas
