After missing Tuesday’s training session, Manchester City is still optimistic that defender Kyle Walker will be fit for the Champions League final.
Walker, a representative of England, was substituted late in the 2-1 FA Cup triumph over Manchester City due to a back issue. Over the course of the season, Walker developed into a crucial part of Pep Guardiola’s team.
Walker skipped Tuesday’s workout because manager Pep Guardiola said he didn’t want to endanger his health before this coming Saturday’s critical European final.
“He had a disturbance in his back,” remarked Guardiola. He wasn’t doing well on Monday, but he was a little bit better today.
We decided against taking a chance and will wait to see what transpires over the next days.
Walker himself said that he needed an extra day of rest and that’s why he missed training.
I’m alright, I’m just growing older, he said to Sky Sports. Everything is OK; I just need one additional day to recover.
I’ve played a lot of minutes over the past several weeks, so the manager advised me to stay inside so I would be ready to go on Saturday.
“I’m alright. During the minutes when I was on the pitch and everyone else was hurt, I dug in and made it through. I have no intention of skipping the Champions League championship game.
When Guardiola switched to City’s current 3-2-4-1 configuration, Walker had previously had difficulty getting into games because the Catalan said he had the skills to play in the back three.
The former Spurs full defender nevertheless played in 27 Premier League games as City won the championship and proved his talent when charged with handling Vinicius Junior in the first leg of their semifinal match against Real Madrid.
