Dean Saunders has suggested that Pep Guardiola’s previous comments about Kyle Walker may have led to the right-back looking to leave the club.
The 33-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to Bayern Munich recently and has reportedly even verbally agreed to join them.
In a recent press conference, Guardiola revealed that the club are currently doing all they can to keep hold of the Englishman despite Bayern’s pursuit of him.
Now, one pundit has shared his views on the matter and even hinted that the City boss may have played a role in seeing the full-back look at the exit door.
Saunders says Guardiola comments may have led to potential Walker exit
Speaking on talkSPORT, Saunders had this to say about Walker and his potential exit from City.
He said: “I actually think he’s got quicker as he’s got in his thirties believe it or not, he was always lightning quick.
“It’d be a big loss. I don’t know whether the comment, which was a bit cutting, from Pep during the season when he was getting his right-back to walk into midfield and he said Kyle Walker cant do this, John Stones can do it, Kyle Walker can’t do it.
“The only thing I can think of is he wants to have a go playing abroad at some point in his career. He’s 33 and if he wants to have a go and play in Germany for a different club abroad, I did it, you did it and it is a great experience you look back on but it takes a lot to leave Man City.”
Back in April, the Spaniard said that Walker, who joined City back in 2017 from Tottenham Hotspur in a deal worth £50m, doesn’t have the capability to play in a more central role and make “educated movements” on the pitch in that area.
A month later, the defender admitted that these words from the manager hurt him, which makes it easy to see why Saunders has suggested that this could have played a role in the fact that the 33-year-old could be open to starting a new chapter in his career elsewhere.
However, now that Guardiola has reiterated how important the veteran is for the Citizens and that they would prefer to keep him in the squad, this shows that if he were to join Bayern this summer, it’d be a big blow for the treble winners.
