Kyle Walker's Sheffield United dream now unlikely after shock Man City decision revealed
Pep Guardiola has revealed that Kyle Walker has asked to leave Man City
Kyle Walker may have spoken in the past of his dream to finish his footbaling career at boyhood club Sheffield United, but that now appears highly unlikely.
Man City boss Pep Guardiola revealed on Saturday night that the England international full back has requested to leave the Etihad after nearly eight years at the club.
Walker was missing from the City squad for their 8-0 hammering of Salford in the FA Cup third round - where former Blades loanee James McAtee scored a hat-trick - and when asked afterwards for the reasonint, Guardiola confirmed that the Sheffield-born defender has asked to ‘explore his options abroad’
Guardiola said: “Two days ago, Kyle asked to explore the options to play abroad at the end of his career. In his mind, he would like to explore it, to go to another country, to play the last years (somewhere else) for many reasons. For that reason, I prefer playing other players whose mind is here.”
He added: “We cannot understand the success we’ve had these years without Kyle. It’s impossible. Having a right-back (like him) gave us something that we didn’t have and he has been amazing. But he said he wanted, in mind and heart, to explore it.”
It is unclear whether Walker will leave City during this month’s transfer window or not.
After a poor run of form by City which was exacerbated by a lengthy injury list towards the end of 2024, Guardiola had been hoping to strengthen his squad.
Guardiola said: “I said just ‘explore’. That doesn’t mean it’s going to happen. I respect him a lot because I’m more than grateful (for what) he’s done in many years with us. He arrived eight years ago and we started to win, win win. He’s been important to the national team and important to our team but, honestly, I don’t know what will happen.”
Walker will turn 35 by the end of this current season and should he spend a few years away, that would likely be the end of his career, meaning his dream of playing for the Blades again would go unfulfilled.
Walker played a handful of games for the Blades before securing a big move to Tottenham in 2009 and he has spoken a lot in the past about his ambition to finish at Bramall Lane, a stone’s throw from where he grew up in Sharrow.
Last year he said on Rio Ferdinand’s podcast: “I don’t want to drop down too low [near the end of his career] because, no disrespect, but I feel the lower it gets, I think it gets harder. Certain things that you have the luxury of at City, whether facilities, nutrition, this, that or the other. But I’d like to finish at Sheffield United. That’s something that I would actually like to do.
“I was there from such a young age until that until I went to Tottenham and I only played five [league] games before I went to Tottenham, and then went back on loan for half a season. So I think I’ve got like 35 games and I'd like to go for as long as possible, to give back or even pass on my experience to the younger players that are coming through or players that are there then. If I can do that, then I’d like to, yeah."
During that same interview, Walker spoke about the possibility of picking up the huge amounts of cash that is being paid to play in Saudi.
"I’m very close to Riyad [Mahrez, who left City for Al-Ahli last summer],” said Walker. “He was one of my good friends when he was here. Listen, I’ll never say never. The money they are paying is obviously a massive factor in why these players are going out there. I think for Ronaldo to go out there, he changed or he opened the pathway for everyone to go there.
“I think if they keep attracting the players that they’re attracting, the league’s going to get better. So then why wouldn’t you want to go? But for me the Premier League is definitely the best league in the world, so I want to compete at this league for as long as possible for as high as possible before anything else. I’ve always said, as long as my legs are are going and I still feel that I can contribute at a certain level, then I want to contribute.”
Walker has helped City win 17 trophies, including six Premier League titles and the Champions League, since joining the club in a £45million switch from Tottenham in 2017.
Yet he was close to joining Bayern Munich after City’s treble win in 2023 and his performances over the past two seasons have been mixed.
Walker, who signed a contract extension in September 2023 tying him to the club until the summer of 2026, has not started for City since their derby defeat by Manchester United last month.