You don’t need us to tell you that Kyle Walker’s £50 million move to Manchester City is insane.
To emphasise the absurdness of the fee, which will see Walker become the world’s most expensive English player in history, AC Milan are about to sign Leonardo Bonucci for £35m.
Bonucci has won 12 trophies in his career. Walker’s trophy cabinet remains empty.
The Mirror are reporting that the fee will actually be £54m. The England international will sign a five-year deal worth around £150,000-per-week, with bonuses meaning Walker can earn £200,000-per-week.
The fee is broken down into three parts. City will pay an initial £45m, £5m in a year and an extra £4m in add-ons.
Walker, 27, will undergo a medical today.
It’s a reflection of the ridiculous state of transfer fees in modern football but it must be noted that £54m is a mere scratch to Man City.
The past has come back to haunt Walker
One imagines Walker is buzzing about the chance to play for the Citizens. He’ll work with one of the finest managers in the game in Pep Guardiola, who is building a side that will surely challenge for the title this season.
But the past has come back to haunt the full-back, who goaded Man City supporters back in 2012 after Spurs’ 3-2 defeat at the Etihad.
The game was settled by a late Mario Balotelli penalty. Angered after a spirited comeback from 2-0 down still ended in defeat, Walker wrote on Twitter: “All u man city fans u can talk now we will just see at the end of the season… was u all there when city was no where to be seen #gloryfans”.
Walker apologised
Walker later deleted the tweet and apologised, adding: “Apologise for this tweet just so gutted about the result today, sometimes football gets the better of u. Night”.
But it was a tweet that fans were always going to screenshot. And with Walker set to sign for Man City, it was bound to resurface.
Walker's apology has no doubt saved him from having to repair his relationship with the Man City fans, who will welcome his arrival following the departures of Bacary Sagna and Pablo Zabaleta.