Kyle Walker in action©AFP
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said on Saturday that club captain Kyle Walker had requested to leave the English champions to explore opportunities abroad. Walker, 34, has won 15 major trophies, including six Premier League titles, since joining City in a £50 million ($61 million) deal from Tottenham in 2017. “He “Two days ago, Kyle asked to explore options to play abroad and end his career,” Guardiola said after Walker did not feature in his side’s 8-0 win in the third. tower of the FA Cup v Salford.
“In his mind, he would like to explore it, go to another country, play the last few years (elsewhere) for many reasons.”
Guardiola confirmed that Walker had also asked to leave at the start of the 2023/24 season amid interest from Bayern Munich at the time.
However, the England international was convinced to stay and signed a new contract until 2026.
“He asked (to leave) two years ago after the treble. I think Bayern Munich wanted him but the offer wasn’t good enough and me and the club asked him (to stay) due to its importance,” added Guardiola.
“We can’t understand the success we’ve had these years without Kyle. It’s impossible.
“Having a right back (like him) gave us something we didn’t have and he was incredible.”
Walker, who has been capped 93 times by England, has also been part of the Three Lions teams which reached the last two European Championship finals.
However, his struggles with form and fitness have played a part in City’s disappointing season so far.
Guardiola’s men won just once in 13 games between October 30 and December 29 to crash out of contention for the Premier League title and exit the League Cup.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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