Recency bias might heavily distort the view of Kyle Walker’s successful eight years at Manchester City. Midway through last season, he departed amid tough times, facing significant criticism for his performance, and leaving as the captain when morale was low.

In his last appearance for the club, Walker entered as a substitute but declined to take on the captain’s responsibility. It was an unfortunate ending to his time there, and there’s little fanfare expected upon his return to the Etihad Stadium with Burnley on Saturday.

The second season of Walker’s captaincy was a struggle, yet his first tenure is perhaps undervalued. After City’s dramatic penalty shootout loss to Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final, Walker initiated actions that some believe fueled their drive to secure an unmatched fourth consecutive league victory.

Despite exhaustion, the team’s management was set to trust players who felt ready for the season’s close, with Guardiola asked to maintain high intensity in training, pushing them to their limits physically. 

City won all six of their remaining Premier League matches that season and pipped Arsenal to the crown by two points.

Guardiola’s choice to keep Walker on board amid strong interest from Bayern Munich following the 2023 Treble turned out to be astute. 

After Ilkay Gundogan’s departure, City needed an experienced leader, and Walker eagerly embraced the added responsibility. 

It’s easily forgotten in this perpetual myth of City steamrolling every season but Guardiola needed a strong captain that year when they floundered before the Club World Cup. 

The silly parlour games and team bonding organised by Walker over Christmas certainly helped and he is said to have led the team with excellence. ‘A commanding voice in the dressing room,’ one source said at the time.

That undoubtedly changed during his final six months as a City player; Guardiola said as much before their reunion. Walker now admits that he shouldn’t have left for AC Milan in January in the midst of a horror run. ‘I should have dug it out with the lads,’ he says. ‘I should’ve stood next to my team-mates, my friends and people I class as my family. But for the first time in my career I was selfish.’ 

Around 150 staff turned up for his goodbye in the canteen; Walker visited the team in Florida during their summer at the Club World Cup, attending the win over Juventus.

Walker’s obsession with becoming the second black player after Ashley Cole to reach 100 England caps was the main contributing factor to leaving and maybe Milan wasn’t quite right in that respect. 

He’s on 96 and raising the bat under Thomas Tuchel feels like a big ask, although Burnley have been impressed so far – the coaching staff believing Walker was the best player on the pitch during last weekend’s draw with Nottingham Forest.

The 35-year-old insists that only striker Lyle Foster is faster than him, in a metric that has always defined his playing style. 

He was au fait with the Clarets well before finalising a deal worth up to £5million, a regular at the training ground over the last two years to watch his son, Roman, 14, feature for the academy. Security staff used to let him nip into the players’ car park.     

Although given the night off on Tuesday, Walker was around the team when they were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Cardiff City and it was noticeable how he tried to spread positivity despite the result. Ellis Clark, who earned a professional debut off the bench, was afforded a pep talk. 

‘We’re not fawning over Kyle,’ one source says. Burnley staff remark how his driving of standards has seen some lengthy conversations with the club’s nutritionists and chefs. ‘It’s like he’s been here years, he’s utilising his experience to try to push us forward.’

He wants to carry that on for some time yet, with backroom staff at City having previously claimed that he ‘defied sports science’ as he constantly backed his physique in a way that saw him bait the best wingers in Europe. 

Walker is arguably the best right back in Premier League history – and in the conversation with some of the all-time greats.

Cafu and Javier Zanetti were offered up as comparisons to Guardiola, who replied: ‘Absolutely. One of the greatest full backs ever. I slept like a baby before games with Kyle there. We always tried to help him with the ball, to read situations, and he was a better player than maybe he thought. The last season was tough for him, for everyone, but I don’t judge one behaviour for a short period of time.’

City are not thought to be planning any grand return for Walker. Do something beforehand and Walker pockets a winger then it looks a little embarrassing. There probably isn’t an available result that allows for a moment after full time.

The multitude of indiscretions and front-page scandals have dominated the autumn of Walker’s career, although the impact he has had on City and the league generally is phenomenal. 

Guardiola couldn’t play the way he wanted to without Walker – his pace quietly mopping up countless dangerous situations over the years – and the respect he has among his peers is something that he will take with him as a legacy.

Only a few days before meeting in Saturday’s fixture, City’s players invited him along to Mediterranean restaurant Fenix for Manuel Akanji’s leaving meal earlier in the week and those close to Walker say he’s often approached by stars from elsewhere when on holiday. ‘There is always this aura about Kyle with other players,’ one source says.

‘It’s the same wherever he is, like “Wow, he’s the best there is”. They play Real and it’s Vinicius Junior or Kylian Mbappe who want his shirt. It’s always the best player who asks for his shirt. The respect for him from people inside the game is insane.’