Kyle Walker appears to have burned his bridges with Manchester City.
The England defender was left out of City's squad after the resounding 8-0 victory over Salford City in the FA Cup. And after the match boss Pep Guardiola revealed Walker had requested to leave the Etihad Stadium.
He said: “It's not easy for me to say, but Kyle is not here because two days ago he asked to explore the possibility of playing abroad. He asked about the Treble, when Bayern wanted him, but the offer wasn't good enough.”
“For that reason I prefer to play against other players who are here with their thoughts. Kyle went to Txiki Begiristain. Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm quite convinced that you shouldn't keep anyone who doesn't want to be here.”
With just over two weeks of the January transfer window remaining, Walker has his work cut out for him if he wants to seal a move. Mirror Football looks at the clubs who could sign him:
The club was most strongly associated with Walker. Italian giants AC Milan are trying to secure his services.
The Serie A team has emerged as a serious contender for Walker's signature. Talks have already started between the two clubs, but an agreement still seems far away.
While it remains to be seen whether a deal can be reached, Walker may not be the only Premier League star to complete a move to San Siro this month. Milan are also interested in a move for Manchester United star Marcus Rashford. It appears he will leave Old Trafford in January, but his most likely route to Italy appears to be on loan.
While AC Milan are contenders for Walker, another European giant could be heading for him: Real Madrid. The Spanish team's need for a new right back is well known.
Dani Carvajal's season has been ruined by injury, while they have remained frustrated in their attempts to sign Trent Alexander-Arnold. With that in mind, Walker could emerge as a fantastic back-up for the Spanish giants.
Real haven't been linked to him yet, but it wouldn't be a surprise if their name appears in the gossip column soon.
Should Walker long for Champions League football, he could look to a club that has been interested in him in the past. German Bayern Munich made a move for him in the summer of 2023, but were unable to agree to terms for the defender.
Instead, Walker committed his future to City by signing a new deal. Like Real Madrid, the Bundesliga side have had their own problems on the right, with Josip Stanisic and Sacha Boey suffering injury problems, forcing Joshua Kimmich to come on as a substitute.
That alone could tempt Bayern to renew their interest in Walker. And it looks like they would have to pay significantly less than the £15 million they tried to spend on him 18 months ago.
A more realistic option for the England right-back could potentially be a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia, where he would follow in the footsteps of a number of former Premier League stars. A host of Saudi clubs have reportedly viewed Walker as an asset.
But as things stand, there is no frontrunner for his services in the Gulf state. However, Al-Nassr are candidates in a move that would see Walker join Cristiano Ronaldo.
He floated a possible move to Saudi Arabia, saying: “I never say never. The money they pay is a huge factor as to why they go there. Cristiano Ronaldo opened the way. If they keep attracting the player they attract, the competition will get better, so why wouldn't you want to go?
A final surprise option for Walker could potentially be a return to former club Sheffield United.
The Blades were reportedly interested in a move before Christmas and wanted to sign him at the end of the season. As for Walker, he has never hidden his ambition to one day return to Bramall Lane.
“I don't want to drop too low, because no disrespect, but I feel like the lower it gets, I think it gets harder,” he previously revealed. “Certain things that you have the luxury of at City, whether it's facilities, food, this, that or something else. But I would like to end up at Sheffield United. That's something I'd actually like to do.
“I was there from such a young age until then, until I went to Tottenham and only played five [league] games before I went to Tottenham, and then went back on loan for half a season. So I think I have about 35 games and I want to keep it going for as long as possible, to give back or even pass on my experience to the younger players coming through or players who are there at the time. If I can do that, I would like to, yes.”
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