While Kyle Walker’s future at Manchester City was in doubt, he declined to comment when asked about Bayern Munich by a reporter.
Walker led City in their Wednesday match against the German team, amid rumors that he would join the Bundesliga champions. Before the game, Pep Guardiola declared Walker “irreplaceable” and promised to battle to keep him while acknowledging that he was unsure if his right-back would stay.
After the game, while the right-back was passing through the mixed zone, a German reporter kept asking him whether he was joining Bayern. The right-back stopped to sign a shirt for a fan. After signing the City fan’s shirt, Walker simply ignored the persistent inquiries and continued walking.
In the lead-up to the game, Thomas Tuchel steadfastly declined to address speculation that Walker was being pursued. He acknowledged that they know exactly who they want to add to their squad to strengthen it, but he avoided mentioning Walker.
He told reporters in Tokyo that the goal was crystal clear. “We put the team first. We concentrate on the players who have contracts with Bayern Munich because they are deserving of our complete support, appreciation, and devotion.
“We provide them with that. We test everyone’s limits as a team before waiting to see what transpires. We are not the first or last football team to make changes during the transfer market.
“There will be another five to six weeks of the transfer process. Simply said, this is the world we live in. To be completely honest, we don’t think about it all that much. We have enough resources to support this crew as is. We are here because we want to challenge ourselves and get better, and if changes occur, they happen.
When queried about the City defender after no particular mention of Walker had been made, Tuchel replied, “No comment.”
