Ex-Man Utd star declares interest in Man City man Kyle Walker as Serie A side 'closing in' on agreement

Manchester City star Kyle Walker looks poised for a move to Serie A with AC Milan reportedly closing in on a deal to sign the defender. The England international has not played for City since a 4-1 home win over West Ham United on January 4.

Fabrizio Romano has reported that AC Milan are “closing in” on an agreement for Walker with the player set to leave Man City after seven-and-a-half years with the club. He joined from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2017, penning an initial five-year deal in a transfer worth up to £50m.

Ex-Manchester United striker and senior advisor for AC Milan’s RedBird owners, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, had already confirmed the San Siro outfit’s interest in Walker as he revealed the club were seeing if a deal to sign the right-back was possible this month.

What did Ibrahimovic say?

“Everyone knows that Walker is a great player, he did great things at City,” the former Sweden striker told DAZN ahead of AC Milan’s defeat to Juventus on Saturday. “When there is someone like him on the market there is a lot of interest. It doesn't go against our vision, because he is strong, he is a leader, he has dominance in the dressing room. Now we are checking if it is possible.

“We talk to (manager Sergio) Conceicao every day, to have a dialogue with him and understand what he likes and what he doesn’t like. We know what is needed and now we work. The team is strong. What do we need? In the transfer market, the more I say it, the more it costs, better not to say it. The team, as I said, is already strong. We showed in the Super Cup that it is a team that can win, now we need continuity.”

What Pep Guardiola has already said

Speaking after their 8-0 win over Salford City in the FA Cup, manager Pep Guardiola said of Walker’s situation: “It's not easy for me to say but Kyle is not here because two days ago he asked to explore the option to play abroad. Kyle went to [director of football] Txiki Begiristain. Maybe I am wrong but I am pretty convinced that you should keep no-one who doesn't want to be here. Kyle asked to explore. It doesn't mean it's going to happen, you never know.”

Shedding more light on those comments, Guardiola said this week: “The situation is different now, but the transfer window will finish when it finishes and I don't know what's going to happen. I said to Kyle now it's a question of the market. He is an incredible player, with incredible physicality and when he's focused he's unstoppable as a right-back. He's a top-class player. If he's fit he can play for one, two, three or four more years as a professional. I've never seen a player with these physical conditions in my career.

“If he wants to explore a move away, the club is going to explore, and he has to decide, not me. It's not my decision. But he has to have an agreement with the club.”