Revealed: Kyle Walker’s earnings at AC Milan after falling out of favour with Pep Guardiola | OneFootball

Kyle Walker’s earnings whilst on loan with AC Milan have been revealed as the 35-year-old returns to Manchester City six months after moving to Italy, as per a new report.

The 35-year-old fell out of favour with Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola in the closing months of 2024, which saw Matheus Nunes and Rico Lewis step in at right-back as Walker fell down the pecking order at the Etihad Stadium.

Walker struggled for form and was to blame for a series of high-profile errors that dearly cost Manchester City, who gave the England international a new contract in 2023, when the defender was tempted to join Bayern Munich.

However, Guardiola convinced Walker to stay put and offered him the captaincy – a decision that the Manchester City boss has since come to regret by his own admission, uncharacteristically taking part in the armband selection process ahead of the new season and appointing Bernard Silva as club captain.

Walker is well past his prime and was one of the key reasons for Manchester City’s defensive frailties in their horror run of form in the fall of 2024, which killed any and all hopes of a fifth consecutive Premier League title.

The Sheffield-born full back is under contract at the Etihad Stadium till 2026 but has been told to find a new club before the beginning of the new campaign, with Manchester City also on the lookout for a new right-back amidst interest in Newcastle’s Valentino Livramento.

After losing his place in Guardiola’s starting XI last season, Walker found exile in Italy as he joined AC Milan on a six-month loan deal – much to Guardiola’s frustrations, seeing his skipper at the time leave midway through the 54-year-old’s most difficult season as a manager.

However, Manchester City have turned a corner after securing a place in next season’s UEFA Champions League courtesy of a third-place Premier League finish last term. Rayan Cherki, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Ait-Nouri have also been added to the squad.

Football Italia have provided some data on Walker’s earnings in Italy as the out-of-favour Manchester City defender officially returns to the Etihad Stadium – a return that will be short-lived as the right-back finds a new club in the coming weeks and months.

Walker reportedly earned a €2.5 million net (post-tax) – which totals to €4.6 million gross (pre-tax and other deductions) – during the entirety of his stay in Milan, which will not be extended after AC Milan decided against re-signing the Englishman for next season.

After making a bright start to life in the Serie A, Walker’s cover was blown and he fell into his same old habits – not even due to his own fault at this point – as age has evidently caught up with the once-rapid defender, who was not called up to the FIFA Club World Cup by Guardiola earlier this month.

It’s admittedly a shame that Walker’s successful career at Manchester City will come to a sour end as the defender is unlikely to receive a reception from the local fanbase at the Etihad Stadium – in a manner similar to Kevin De Bruyne’s farewell against Bournemouth in May.