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England defender Kyle Walker has admitted that he regrets the timing of his departure from Manchester City last January, saying that as club captain he ‘should have stood by’ his team-mates when they were struggling.
Walker, 35, moved to Serie A giants AC Milan because he couldn’t get a regular game in Pep Guardiola’s team, despite the fact they were enduring a miserable season as they looked to defend their Premier League crown.
Pace ace Walker, capped 96 times by his country, won the first domestic Treble in English football during a storied spell at the Etihad Stadium but he is still scarred by the way it all ended.
Now back in the Premier League with Burnley, Walker told Sky Sports: ‘Should I have left and gone on loan to AC Milan? I was the club captain, and you’re the first one in line when things are not going really well. At that time in the season, should I have left? Looking back at it now, probably no.
‘I should have stood by or next to my team-mates, next to my friends and people who I class as my family. But for the first time probably in my career I was selfish and I thought about myself and I wanted to play football.
‘I don’t see it as a bad reason but I wasn’t happy sitting on the bench and getting a game here, there and whenever. I felt that I still had a point to prove that I could still play at a high level. When a club like AC Milan comes I didn’t think I could turn them down.
Kyle Walker gets his hands on the Premier League trophy during City’s historic Treble season
Walker has joined Scott Parker’s struggling Burnley and hopes to help them avoid the drop
Walker had a tough afternoon during Burnley’s 5-1 defeat on his return to the Etihad Stadium
‘When I came back in the summer I had time to reflect on it. But then I don’t regret it as I always wanted to play abroad and experience that. I’m glad I did the sixth months, but I probably could have done a bit better.’
It was also around the time of his move to Italy that Walker was the subject of a string of allegations about his private life, with wife Annie Kilner having served him with divorce papers.
Walker eventually returned to the UK in July and signed a two-year deal at Burnley. He had an uneasy return to City in September, when the Clarets were dismantled 5-1 by Guardiola’s improving team. Erling Haaland scored twice late on and Maxime Esteve scored two own goals.
