Wayne Rooney asked Manchester City's decision to allow Kyle Walker to leave the club last month after he had seen the men of Pep Guardiola to a 3-2 defeat of Real Madrid on Tuesday evening.
Club captain Walker inquired that he wanted to explore opportunities somewhere else in the early stages of last month's transfer star and then recovered from Italian Giants AC Milan.
But Rooney is adamant that City should have done more a fight to keep the experienced defender.
City led twice in the Etihad on Tuesday, but collapsed in the final phase when late goals from Brahim Diaz and Jude Bellingham Madrid handed over the benefit in their play-off tie in the Champions League. Rooney believes that it could have been different if Walker was still around and compared the situation of the English full back with one that he was at Manchester United in 2017.
After he had fallen out of grace under Jose Mourinho, Rooney wanted to leave in January, but agreed to stay until the end of the season, and he thinks City should have achieved a similar deal with Walker.
Rooney spoke as an expert on Amazon Prime video: “Captain of the club, and the importance of him in recent years, I think, probably an agreement to say:” Okay, let's wait until summer. Help us ” . Perhaps the competition is now too far beyond their reach, but they still have the Champions League. Help us get through the season.
“I had it with Mourinho. When I didn't play with Jose Mourinho and I had the same conversation in January and he said to me: “Stay until the end of the season, I need you to help us in the Europa League”.
'It was difficult for me to take, but I respected him for that, and we shaked hands, and then I left at the end of the season. So I think that would have been a wiser exercise for Kyle. '
Rooney then won the Europa League and League Cup in the second half of his last season in United before he left Old Trafford to re -do his boys' club, Everton.
But Walker chose not to stay around and now tries to rediscover his best shape in Milan.
City may already regret that he will go to Tuesday evening after a difficult evening before their straight back.
Manuel Akanji started on the right flank, but was injured in the last phases of the first half and was unable to return after the break.
His replacement, Rico Lewis, was then robbed of possession in the construction of the winning goal of Vinicius JR, before the Brazilian winger set up a simple finish for Bellingham.
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