Kyle Walker has acknowledged that the title hunt this season has kept him up at night.
It’s looking like Manchester City will win the Premier League for an unprecedented fourth year in a row. Walker acknowledges that he still gets nervous and feels stressed during the run-in, despite City’s unprecedented success.
Even though City is now leading the title race, Pep Guardiola’s team has been in a thrilling sprint for the championship with Arsenal, and it will go right up to the last day of play. Walker claims that despite all of his victories, the tension of City’s crucial match against Tottenham—which might ultimately end up being the title decider—kept him up at night.
City back to full Walker stated: “I believe that occasionally people forget that we are human beings with emotions, nerves, and adrenaline coursing through our bodies.
“The previous night, I had trouble sleeping. In the last moments before the game, I was rushing to get to the hotel. All you want is for the game to begin. It’s nerves mixed with enthusiasm. I can’t sleep most of the time since I’m so excited about the game, so this is nothing new for me.
You shouldn’t play football if you don’t enjoy participating in these contests. This is what distinguishes the truly exceptional players from the mediocre ones, and these are the pressure-filled games you want to play in. You have to go and deliver in the face of the club’s demands and the stressful atmosphere. We need to support this team as we did the past few years, and they compensate us well for our professional status.
Walker has already taken home five championships, including the Champions League, and last season’s Triple Crown marked a turning point for Guardiola’s City. They are aware of what winning takes.
Certainly, experience does assist, Walker added. We have experienced the parts of the voyage in England where you go through certain stages and you overcome them together. You rely on other people as well since as soon as you turn to your left, experienced players who have won numerous championships with you or their nations appear directly in front of you.
Although it’s a team game, most people probably look to the veteran players who have been here for a while and have won it or been extremely fortunate to win it a few times. It’s not a solitary sport, nor is it tennis. We have a shared interest in it. It’s a group endeavour.
Walker is a veteran member of the team who dons the captain’s armband and motivates the other players with remarks in the locker room. They now have one more game left, against West Ham on Sunday, while Arsenal plays Everton; but, for City to lose in the championship game, they must make a mistake.
Walker, however, chuckled as he cautioned them against having the same last-day scare as they had against Aston Villa two years prior—overcoming a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 and take home the championship.
“Avoid going behind 2-0! That’s all there is to it,” Walker remarked. “Avoid falling behind 2-0 and placing yourself in a precarious situation where you have to rely on Gundo (Ilkay Gundogan) to produce great Zidane moments.” That is all there is to it. There are usually times during the season when you’ll require some words. You don’t have a campaign that is complete and running smoothly. Sometimes you need to lean on certain players and have a private conversation with them one-on-one or as a group.
My only desires are the best for the group of guys in the club and the club itself. They work extremely hard and we frequently receive the desired outcome.
That’s not to say Arsenal doesn’t do it. They do, as I am acquainted with Mikel and the boys who work there, and they are diligent and hardworking. The best team should win the Premier League, and whoever triumphs on Sunday deserves to do so.
