Where it all went wrong for Kyle Walker: Inside the muddled mind, love triangle chaos and niggling injuries as Man City captain demands move abroad, revealed by JACK GAUGHAN
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Pep Guardiola's admission last night that Kyle Walker has asked to leave Manchester City to 'explore opportunities abroad' shows just how far the right-back's stock has fallen at the Etihad. Over the course of City's dominance in the Premier League, Guardiola has shown he is a man who will fiercely defend his players. Stand by them through bewilderingly poor patches of form, stand by them in the face of public scandal.
![[His struggles on the pitch come amid a £27m divorce battle with his wife Annie Kilner (left)]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/12/12/93200377-14275703-His_struggles_on_the_pitch_come_amid_a_27m_divorce_battle_with_h-a-5_1736683320473.jpg)
He has relented on the approach at times this season - openly talking about individual mistakes on the eve of the 2-0 defeat at Juventus, and lighting a fire under Jack Grealish by admitting Savinho was in 'better shape' six days ago. But he is a man, like the rest of us, who had run out of all other logical reasons for City's malaise.
![[Pep Guardiola has put a lot of trust in Walker, but the right back is now becoming a liability]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/12/12/93200375-14275703-Pep_Guardiola_has_put_a_lot_of_trust_in_Walker_but_the_right_bac-a-9_1736683320515.jpg)
Over the course of this wretched, tortured run, Guardiola didn't blamed individuals, believing that the mistakes are a result of more general deficiencies. Anxiety seeped in, an uncertainty – plainly evident in the capitulation against Manchester United last month.
![[City have won 14 matches in all competitions this season and only two of those have come when Walker has started - he has played despite not being 100 per cent fit at times this term]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/12/12/93200499-14275703-City_have_won_14_matches_in_all_competitions_this_season_and_onl-a-6_1736683320474.jpg)
Looking at the footage of games between their defeat by Bournemouth on November 2 and loss against Man United over a month later, it is reasonable to calculate that 16 errors have contributed to the opposition scoring. The official statistics will not, however, paint such a bleak picture. Those figures will be in single digits, and that brings us to Walker, who was not in the squad during Man City's 8-0 thrashing over Salford on Saturday. The leader of men within this group, voted twice to be given the captain’s armband.
![[He has been slow to react to dangerous situations, including for Weston McKennie's goal during City's defeat by Juventus in December]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/12/12/93200617-14275703-He_has_been_slow_to_react_to_dangerous_situations_including_for_-a-10_1736683320643.jpg)
