Ilkay Gundogan has revealed that a lack of firm contract talks from Manchester City until "quite late in the season" was a contributing factor in his exit from the club during the summer.
Gundogan lifted the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League trophies as City captain in May and June, but then joined Barcelona as a free agent in July after his contract had expired.
The German midfielder has previously spoken about his childhood affection for Barcelona, which was a major reason in choosing them, but there was more to his City exit than initially thought.
"Many people don't know this," he told Bild. "In the end, it wasn't about a year or two. There was no problem with the [contract length]. City waited a relatively long time until the talks really intensified. If this had happened a little earlier, the situation would have been different.
"In the end [the treble] was the perfect ending, it couldn't have come at a better time. It was also my childhood dream to play for FC Barcelona."
Referencing that his future remained unknown into the final weeks of last season, Gundogan added: "When it comes to a Champions League quarter-final or semi-final, players want to concentrate purely on sport. I didn't know what would happen next. I couldn't plan anything. Pep [Guardiola]'s appreciation was always there, but officially there was no movement from the club for a long time.
"Until May, there was little reason for me to want to change."
Gundogan has also admitted that, although he was able to hold a joint farewell party Riyad Mahrez with all the players, circumstances meant he could only say goodbye to Guardiola on the phone.
"Unfortunately, I didn't say goodbye in person because I only made the decision after the Champions League final, two days before the Germany game against Colombia," he explained.
"That was probably the hardest phone call I've ever had in my life. The conversation was emotional, but Pep was also happy for me. I switched to the club that was close to his heart and his childhood, and as a fan he was very happy about that.
"He also told me: If I need anything, I should contact him at any time."
