The Italian media have given their take on Kyle Walker after he started during AC Milan’s 2-1 aggregate defeat against Feyenoord on Tuesday, which saw them eliminated from this year’s Champions League.
Walker, 34, started the match against the Rotterdam side at the San Siro – formerly Stadio Giuseppe Meazza – on Tuesday evening.
Milan came into the game trailing by a goal, but new signing Santiago Gimenez scored against his former club after just 40 seconds to level the tie on aggregate.
But the game took an unexpected twist when Milan’s Theo Hernandez was shown a second yellow card for simulation after going over in the penalty area.
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Things went from bad to worse for Milan on 71 minutes when Julian Carranza headed beyond Mike Maignan to hand the Dutch side the advantage in the tie.
And the likes of Joao Felix and Rafael Leao could not save their team from crashing out of this year’s edition of the Champions League.
Feyenoord progressed to the round of 16 and will face either Inter Milan or Arsenal next.
But how did the Italian media react, and what did they make of Walker’s performance?
One thing is for sure, that Walker will not realise his “dream” of winning the Champions League with Milan, this season at least.
“I hope to contribute with my experience and leadership and to help Milan return to where it wants to be,” Walker said after he completed his loan move from Manchester City.
“Winning the Champions League would be a dream come true: I have experienced it in a great final with City.”
The country’s media mostly focused on Hernandez’s red card, but some outlets criticised the England international.
Corriere Della Sera gave the right-back a 5.5/10 rating for his showing on Tuesday and explained how he his “leadership is not always enough: on the equaliser cross, he did not put up much resistance".
Football Italia gave him a slightly higher rating of 6.5/10 and even praised his “leadership” qualities.
“His presence on the right flank seems to make the whole defence more confident and calm, as his leadership, concentration and speed still make him a tough obstacle to overcome for his opponents,” the publication wrote.
La Gazzetta dello Sport gave Walker a 5.5 rating.
Walker spoke to Sky Italia after the disappointing result.
"The way we were controlling the game, we were the only ones on the pitch, then the referee made his decision: I didn't see the episode, I can't say if it was right or wrong," said Walker.
"He was sent off, I don't know if he simulated or not: the referee told me that he simulated 100%. I haven't seen the episode on TV yet."
Topics: AC Milan, Champions League, Feyenoord, Kyle Walker, Transfer News
Luke Davies