Pep Guardiola admits he would have had a “big, big problem” if Kyle Walker had left Manchester City in the summertime.
The England right-back got here near leaving the treble winners for Bayern Munich however in the end opted to remain and this week prolonged his contract on the Etihad Stadium till 2026.
The 33-year-old had a spell out of favour final season however has began the brand new marketing campaign strongly and Guardiola is happy to have retained his companies after dropping skilled pair Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez.
The City supervisor stated: “After Gundo and Riyad, losing Bernardo (Silva) and Kyle would have have been a big, big problem.
“It’s not about the quality – the skills you can find quite similar, or different players can help you – but there are some things in the locker room that are so difficult to replace.
“These guys have a lot of experience in the important moments of important games. You know exactly how he’s going to respond in the bad moments.
“It would have been a big loss. That’s why as a club of course we fought for him to stay with us.”
Walker joined City from Tottenham in 2017 and has since received 15 trophies, together with the Champions League and 5 Premier League titles.
Guardiola believes he has matured right into a much better participant than when he arrived and just lately underlined his qualities together with his response to a calamitous error final month.
Walker was at fault as Sheffield United claimed a late equaliser towards City of their Premier League conflict at Bramall Lane however then recovered to tee up Rodri’s dramatic winner.
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Guardiola stated: “He made a wrong decision when they equalised but, right after the equaliser, the next two actions came from Kyle in the byline. It was a goal. What a top, top player.
“He forgets what happened, says, ‘OK I’m going to win the game’. That defines the big, big players.
“No doubt he’s a much, much better player than seven years ago when he arrived. That is clear.
“Everyone makes mistakes but he has an incredible heart. And he’s a really nice guy, really nice, always tries to help.
“When a player is injured, he always calls him. I was at home (after back surgery) and he called me twice. ‘How you feel, Pep?’ This counts a lot in the group of people.
“The reason why we have a lot of success? The quality of human beings that we have.”
Walker has captained City thus far this season and, with Kevin De Bruyne at the moment sidelined, might be the favoured option to succeed Gundogan within the function full-time.
A vote among the many squad and backroom workers – by which Guardiola is not going to take part – is because of be held within the coming days.
Guardiola stated: “The vote will be taken the next days and the players will decide. It belongs to the players, not to me. What they decide, I’m fine (with).”
