Why did Antonio Rudiger call Ilkay Gundogan ‘Abi’ after Germany win?

“So happy for you Abi,” Antonio Rudiger wrote on Instagram after the win against Hungary, tagging Ilkay Gundogan.

Why ‘Abi’, though?

‘Abi’ is translated as ‘big brother’ from Turkish. Ilkay has Turkish roots, so this nickname suits him well.

Real Madrid players also call Arda Guler that way. The only major difference is that Gundogan was born in Germany while the Whites’ wonderkid’s homeland is exactly Turkey.