Kyle Walker believes Manchester City dominance is incomplete without UEFA Champions League title

Mason Mount in action for Chelsea

Kyle Walker believes Manchester City dominance is incomplete without UEFA Champions League title

Ayoola Kelechi 06:23 - 09.06.2023

Manchester City's Kyle Walker is desperate for the club to win the UEFA Champions League title after coming so close against Chelsea in 2021

Manchester City full-back Kyle Walker has backed his side to become one of the greatest in history and believes that the Cityzens need to exorcise the ghosts of the 2021 UEFA Champions League defeat to Chelsea to be remembered as one of the best teams ever.

Walker dreams of revenge for 2021 loss

Walker was speaking ahead of Manchester City’s UEFA Champions League final against Serie A giants Inter, which gives them the chance to become European Champions for the first time in the club’s history as well as claim a historic treble. 

var widgetLoaderConfig = widgetLoaderConfig || { CDN_URL: 'https://widgets.sportal365.com', APP_LINK: 'desktop', API_URL: 'https://africa.football.api.sportal365.com/', API_KEY: '2f852b4de2f3a5cf3188e74b33087bb4:2c18422f8e826a7d11aeed52edb2449e', LANG: 'en', REQUEST_INTERVAL: 30, ENABLE_BET_SLIP: false, AUTHOR: false, THEME: "light", TOURNAMENT_ORDER: "pulse_nigeria", LINK_OPTIONS_V2: { 'player' : { 'url': '/football/player/{playerId}' }, 'team' : { 'url': '/football/{teamId}' }, 'tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}' }, 'match': { 'url' : '/football/match/{matchId}', 'sort': { 'criteria': 'alphabetically', 'direction': 'asc' } }, 'configuration': { 'newWindow': false }, 'standings_tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}/standings' } } }; if (!document.querySelector('script[src="https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js"]')) { window.setTimeout(function () { let scriptCss = document.createElement('link'); scriptCss.href = 'https://www.pulsesports.ug/css/sport-widgets.css?v=1668785443'; scriptCss.rel = 'stylesheet'; scriptCss.type = 'text/css'; document.body.appendChild(scriptCss); let scriptTag = document.createElement('script'); scriptTag.src = 'https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js'; scriptTag.defer = true; scriptTag.onload = function () { window.setTimeout(function () { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }, 200); }; document.head.appendChild(scriptTag); }, 0); } else { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }

Walker spoke of the importance of the UCL in a team’s legacy, telling sources in England, "We know we are a good team, but to be recognised globally as one of the best teams, you need to win the Champions League.”

Despite winning the Premier League title in five of the last six seasons with Manchester City, the English defender believes that the Cityzens still need to reach a new level and erase the hurt from the 2021 final loss to Chelsea when they play Inter. 

Kyle Walker and Jack Grealish lifting the Premier League trophy
Kyle Walker and Jack Grealish lifting the Premier League trophy

He said, "It doesn't define what this squad has achieved over the last six years ... We have a second chance with Pep and the group of players who have stayed around and we need to put right the wrongs we did against Chelsea."

Walker believes Manchester City need European glory to truly be great

Walker reminisced on some of the greatest teams in English football history, noting that they all had landmark achievements, including crosstown rivals Manchester United, who won the treble in 1999. 

The 33-year-old full-back noted that Manchester City needed to emulate them to truly be great, saying, "That United team, along with the Invincibles, are probably up there with the best Premier League teams of all time. 

var widgetLoaderConfig = widgetLoaderConfig || { CDN_URL: 'https://widgets.sportal365.com', APP_LINK: 'desktop', API_URL: 'https://africa.football.api.sportal365.com/', API_KEY: '2f852b4de2f3a5cf3188e74b33087bb4:2c18422f8e826a7d11aeed52edb2449e', LANG: 'en', REQUEST_INTERVAL: 30, ENABLE_BET_SLIP: false, AUTHOR: false, THEME: "light", TOURNAMENT_ORDER: "pulse_nigeria", LINK_OPTIONS_V2: { 'player' : { 'url': '/football/player/{playerId}' }, 'team' : { 'url': '/football/{teamId}' }, 'tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}' }, 'match': { 'url' : '/football/match/{matchId}', 'sort': { 'criteria': 'alphabetically', 'direction': 'asc' } }, 'configuration': { 'newWindow': false }, 'standings_tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}/standings' } } }; if (!document.querySelector('script[src="https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js"]')) { window.setTimeout(function () { let scriptCss = document.createElement('link'); scriptCss.href = 'https://www.pulsesports.ug/css/sport-widgets.css?v=1668785443'; scriptCss.rel = 'stylesheet'; scriptCss.type = 'text/css'; document.body.appendChild(scriptCss); let scriptTag = document.createElement('script'); scriptTag.src = 'https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js'; scriptTag.defer = true; scriptTag.onload = function () { window.setTimeout(function () { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }, 200); }; document.head.appendChild(scriptTag); }, 0); } else { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }

"What us and Liverpool - to a certain extent - have done where we have been battling for the last number of years, I think we should be in consideration but they have got the big Champions League trophy that we can never say we have got.

"So, for us to be in contention of talking around that, we need to go and pick this up."

With a win against Inter, Manchester City could become the sixth English team to win the UEFA Champions League and the first team to win a maiden title since Chelsea in 2012. 

Related content