‘SON’s longtime friend’ Walker won’t be playing with Kim Min-jae after all… “Decision to re-sign for Man City after meal with Guardiola”

Kyle Walker, 33, who had been linked with a move to Bayern Munich, will remain at Manchester City after all.

“Despite agreeing to move to Munich, Walker has changed his mind and decided to stay at City,” the British newspaper The Athletic reported on Aug. 8 (KST).

European transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano also said on his official social networking service (SNS) on the 9th, “Walker has received an official offer from Man City to re-sign and will sign the contract soon.” “Walker will stay at Man City,” he said.

Walker came to the attention of Munich shortly after the end of last season. Thomas Tuchel, who took over mid-season, wanted to overhaul the defense and saw Walker as the perfect fit at right-back. The ambitious signing of world-class Kim Min-jae, who was named Serie A’s best defender, was one piece of the puzzle, but Tuchel wanted a strong, quick defender like Walker for the right flank. According to The Athletic, Walker even had personal talks with Munich last month. However, he changed his mind after speaking with City manager Pep Guardiola.

Walker’s change of heart appears to have come after a dinner with Guardiola. On July 7, the British newspaper The Sun captured footage of Walker and Guardiola hugging after a meal at a Japanese restaurant in Man City. The Sun reported, “The pair dined together for two and a half hours. Guardiola offered Walker a new contract and convinced him to stay at City,” the report said.

“After the meal, Walker and Guardiola continued their conversation outside the restaurant. Guardiola then hugged Walker before heading home on his £50 million bike.”

Guardiola has let go of experienced players such as Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez this summer, while Bernardo Silva has attracted interest from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Barcelona and Saudi Arabia.

Guardiola has expressed his disappointment at the departure of his veteran players and has publicly asked Walker and Silva to stay. Speaking ahead of the Community Shield clash with Arsenal, he said, “It is very difficult to replace these two. They have a very important impact on the team. City want to keep them together and we will do everything to do that.”

The Athletic added: “Walker has the most experience of any City full-back. “Walker is the most experienced of City’s full-backs and his re-signing means the depth and versatility of City’s defense can be maintained,” said The Athletic. 꽁머니

Walker appeared in 39 official games last season. Of those, 31 were starts. After seemingly falling behind in the race for a starting spot, he regained Guardiola’s trust by starting 11 of the final 13 league games. However, in the UEFA Champions League final against Inter Milan, he only played eight minutes as a late substitute.

Walker spent six years at Tottenham between 2011 and 2017. He and Son became close friends after spending two seasons together in 2015, when Son moved to Tottenham. His success at Spurs led to his move to City in 2017 for a record £54 million, the highest transfer fee ever for a defender at the time. In his six seasons at City, he won five EPL titles, two FA Cups, and four League Cups. He also lifted the UCL trophy last season, the Big Ears, and tasted almost every winning moment a player can experience.