Kyle Walker’s talents deserved so much more than his crude tabloid caricature | Jonathan Liew
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One of the most successful full-backs of the modern era, Walker has been dogged by a prurient obsession with his personal life. England ace Kyle Walker has SENSATIONALLY asked Manchester City for a divorce – and pals fear the sharp decline of his recovery pace could be to blame. According to insiders, jilted Pep Guardiola was HEARTBROKEN on hearing about Walker’s decision to walk out on their seven-year partnership, having publicly defended the 0.06-non-penalty-expected-goal-contributions-per-90-minutes right-back on numerous occasions this season. One source exclusively told the Guardian: “It’ll be an amicable split given everything they’ve been through together. But there’s a mutual recognition that a club of City’s standing can’t go on carrying a player averaging 7.7 possession losses per game and a career‑low 5.8 final-third passes per 90.”.
![[Jonathan Liew]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2019/11/25/Jonathan_Liew.png?width=180&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Walker, 34, dropped his BOMBSHELL news last week to City’s head honcho Txiki Begiristain, 60, amid persistent rumours over a budding romance with Italian stallions Milan, 125, whose new coach Sérgio Conceição, 50, could see Walker, 34, as a better fit for his dynamic, transition-based defensive buildup style than either Emerson Royal, 25, or Davide Calabria, 28.
![[Walker basks in the acclaim after City’s treble win in 2023]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/84622873e7f5d6117f040b87e4eb7308127cb26c/0_180_4822_2894/master/4822.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
“Obviously Pep’s trying to re-establish their stability in possession, get some pausa back into their attacking phase, and for that you need a rest defence worthy of the name,” the pal said. “Kyle’s not naive – he’s seen what people have been saying about him online, that his recovery pace has been impacted by multiple groin injuries, that City have an 18% win rate this season when he starts – and with neither Calabria or Royal really nailing down a first-team slot at San Siro, a fresh start could be best for everyone.”.
![[Kyle Walker chases after the ball.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/d04b2e08064e62f3a938fb24c37a69e2af38f5af/0_99_2459_1475/master/2459.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
