When it comes to transfers, it doesn’t get much better than İlkay Gündoğan as a free agent. Even at 32 years of age, the German is a steal for Barcelona, and, for all intents and purposes, the closest thing to a perfect midfielder if there ever was one. Gündoğan can do everything and can play everywhere; Even Pep is yet to find a role that the German can’t execute (almost) flawlessly. That should say enough about his quality.

But while Gündoğan is someone who does everything, he can’t do it all at once and in every single role. For Xavi, that means finding the most optimal way to harness very specific and very unique traits the ex-Manchester City man can offer Barcelona to help them reach new heights.

This begs the question: how does one find the perfect role for the perfect midfielder?