It seems like Pep Guardiola is in no mood to let Manchester City’s 2025/2026 season slip away after the disappointment of the previous campaign.
As a result, Manchester City have done everything they can to keep the two-time treble winner happy by making four signings before the start of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Pep Guardiola hoped Manchester City would show ambition before he signed a two-year contract extension and the Sky Blues have certainly delivered on their promise.
Guardiola picked Bernardo Silva as Manchester City’s captain, admitting that he has never picked a skipper in his career before: “I am the manager, and for the first time in my career, I decided who will be my captains. I didn’t like what happened last season, and I decided this season who will represent the team.”
The City boss added: “I decided this season, sometimes I want to be the boss…And this season I decided to do it. So I chose the four captains, and at the end of the tour, this [FIFA Club] World Cup, maybe we’ll choose one or two more.”
Kyle Walker should be upset about Pep Guardiola picking Man City captain for the first time
With Guardiola revealing he went out of his way to pick Manchester City’s brand-new captain, one man who should be disappointed with himself is Kyle Walker, who donned the armband for one and a half seasons.
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Walker had to surrender the captaincy only after deciding to depart the Etihad Stadium in favour of a loan move to AC Milan.
Kyle Walker in action during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal.
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
While the Englishman was one of Manchester City’s biggest weak links last season, his underwhelming performances could be excused as ultimately, age catches up with even some of the best of the best.
However, it seems like Pep Guardiola has questioned the 35-year-old’s leadership, admitting he “didn’t like what happened last season.”
Walker has credited Guardiola for his rise and considering it looks like he has upset the Manchester City boss will not sit too well with him, taking into account that the pair worked in tandem for almost a decade.
Manchester City signed Walker for £50 million during the Catalan’s tenure, which was a world-record fee at the time, highlighting how much faith he had in the former Tottenham Hotspur right-back.
MOST EXPENSIVE DEFENDERS IN HISTORY FEE CLUB RANKING
HARRY MAGUIRE £80m MANCHESTER UNITED FIRST
JOSKO GVARDIOL £77.6m MANCHESTER CITY SECOND
VIRGIL VAN DIJK £75m LIVERPOOL THIRD
MATTHIJS DE LIGT £72m JUVENTUS FOURTH
KYLE WALKER £50m MANCHESTER CITY FOURTEENTH
The veteran’s decision to leave City when they were having their most difficult season mid-way also reflects poorly on him, considering the England international was their skipper at the time.
While the past is the past, Walker would be regretting how he led the side last season after winning the Premier League title as captain in 2024.
Why Guardiola was disappointed with Kyle Walker behind the scenes
The Athletic reported that Pep Guardiola was “disappointed” after Walker communicated his decision to leave Manchester City and join AC Milan instead of approaching him.
Guardiola felt he had a close bond with the six-time Premier League winner, which might explain why he was burnt by last season and decision to take matters into his own hands by picking City’s new captain.