Guardiola-Walker fallout shown in new Manchester City documentary

A new Amazon Prime documentary shows Pep Guardiola addressing Manchester City’s players after Kyle Walker joined AC Milan on loan in January 2025. The manager described the captain’s departure as deeply painful and questioned how Walker handled his decision to seek a new challenge.

The series follows Guardiola during the final two years of his time at City and captures him speaking to the squad before a home match against Chelsea. He told the players that Walker could have approached him directly if he felt exhausted, but argued that a captain had responsibilities during difficult periods. Guardiola also asked the team to consider its own role in the breakdown with their captain.

The tension had already surfaced after City’s defeat at Liverpool in December 2024. Walker lost possession to Luis Diaz, who then won a penalty. Guardiola criticised the error in the dressing room, prompting an angry response from Walker, who complained that he was repeatedly being singled out. When Guardiola linked the scrutiny to Walker’s captaincy, the defender questioned whether the manager had ever wanted him in that role.

Walker had been selected as City captain by his teammates for the 2024-25 season, with Kevin De Bruyne, Ruben Dias, Rodri and Bernardo Silva serving as vice-captains. He made 316 appearances for City after moving from Tottenham in 2017 for £50 million and won six Premier League titles under Guardiola. His final season ended without a trophy, only the second such campaign for City since Guardiola took charge in July 2016.

The documentary also shows how the dispute unfolded while Guardiola was uncertain about his own future. He had signed a contract extension in November 2024, but revealed that a run of four consecutive defeats had led him to consider whether his time at the club was finished. City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak also said he was unsure whether Guardiola would agree to remain.

Guardiola is shown urging the players to tell him if they believed he had become a problem. He said he had renewed because he wanted to remain with them and continue competing, rather than stay for financial reasons. The programme also covers his divorce and the concern among staff about the effect of his personal difficulties, adding context to the emotional exchanges captured during City’s troubled 2024-25 campaign.