Manchester City star confirms intention to retire at Etihad Stadium following summer of transfer uncertainty

Kyle Walker has confirmed plans to extend his contract with Manchester City and possibly retire after an uncertain summer for the defender at Etihad.

Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich have made headway in negotiations with the England international defender on a personal level and there is consensus in various quarters that both sides have reached an agreement.

Ultimately, however, Pep Guardiola and Manchester City showed a strong desire to keep Walker’s services for the new season and beyond by making the player and his agents a tempting contract offer.

With the transfer windowsofficiallyclosed in Germany and England, Kyle Walker has stayed at home with the Premier League champions and has confirmed to the media that he will sign a new contract with the club in due course.

AfterSaturdayafternoon’s 5-1 win over Fulham, Kyle Walker told the mediaatlength:“A[contractextension] is imminent.Thisis my seventh season here [at Manchester City] and I feel like one of them.” the old ones:there’s me, Kevin [De Bruyne], John [Stones], Bernardo [Silva] and [Ederson] from the first two Seasons when Pep [Guardiola] came on.

“I love the place, I’ve experienced things I only dreamt of here – especially the last season – so why would you want to leave a club like this.”

Walker continued by explaining that the uncertainty over his future during the summer transfer window stemmed from concerns over game-time at the very top of European football, and that his focus in talks with several parties was on which club could offer the most years.

“It was about who gave me the most years, it wasn’t like I was going to a worse club because Bayern Munich is a massive club and seeing what Harry [Kane] is doing there and will do, it wasn’t a step down it was just what gave me the years in my contract to play football at the highest level.

“In the back of my head I always wanted to play for Man City but I had to do what was right for me and my future and that was just whichever club gave me the most years. I still think I’ve got a lot of life in the legs and I want to continue playing football.

“It was close but in football things can happen. Decisions can be made. Things can turn. It wasn’t meant to be. Would I have enjoyed the experience? Of course I would have done. But this club is a great club and you can’t underestimate what this club has done in the last six or seven years.”

For Kyle Walker, at this stage in his career, the focus is always on football and never on money he insisted, “I wanted to stay and live out the contract but I also wanted to play football so if I don’t feel that I am getting enough game time whether that is on x amount of pounds or no pounds I just want to play football.

“I don’t care about the money. You might say that’s a cliché but I don’t care. If I haven’t saved enough at my age, at 33, I shouldn’t be worrying about money. I am just worried about my happiness and playing football.”

It is understood that Kyle Walker will put pen to paper on a new and improved three-year agreement, keeping him at Manchester City until at least the summer of 2026, when the Premier League icon will be 36-years-old.

Walker is currently the club’s vice-captain and in the absence of Kevin De Bruyne, has been donning the captain’s armband regularly.

Manchester City’s first-team and backroom will vote on the club’s new five-man management team in the coming days. The decisions will be made after the end of the summer transfer window.

Sam Kyle Walker has a good chance of becoming Manchester City’s permanent captain after Ilkay Gundogan decided to leave the club on a free transfer earlier this summer and join FC Barcelona.