Kyle Walker must bounce back from Man City 'hurt' and heed timely Pep Guardiola message

Like so many at Manchester City before him, Kyle Walker has been dealing with the disappointment of being dropped for the biggest occasions and the moral quandary over his future.

Should Walker call time on a six-year spell at the Etihad this summer, then his absence from the starting line-up in the Champions League final earlier this month will go down as a defining moment. Having been one of City's best players in the previous knockout rounds against Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, the decision to bench him was both brave and ruthless from Pep Guardiola.

The City boss admitted last month dropping players is the hardest part of his job, something that 'kills' him. But in having one of the best squads around, those decisions have to be made and Walker has tended to bear the brunt.

Guardiola claimed Walker's absence was purely tactical in April, but it made it no less cutting to hear that the defender cannot cope with his tactical demands. "He cannot do it," the City boss said. "He will always have pace, he will be the fastest in this room at 60. To play inside you have to make some movements, he has other characteristics."

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The comments sparked a response from Walker, who opened up on the 'hurt' of being dropped by his manager.

"I have to react as a professional, he is my manager, my boss, sometimes some opinions in football you don’t always agree with but what he has done for me and Man City has been nothing short of tremendous," Walker admitted of those comments.

"Did it hurt? Of course it did. You start to doubt yourself but you have to go back to basics to what he bought you for and prove him wrong and that is what I have done. I am one of