Captain Walker in rallying call for players to put pain to one side for club

KYLE Walker felt he needed to force himself back into the City team at Bournemouth to fulfil his duties as captain.

- SIMON BAJKOWSKI

Walker, 33, had missed the last four games for the Blues and his only training in that time was a few minutes on the Friday before the squad headed down to the south coast.

Nevertheless, with an injury crisis at the club and Pep Guardiola asking his stars to play through the pain, Walker put his hand up to join a number of his team-mates who were also nursing problems but gave it their all.

It wasn't to be on the day, with City suffering their first league defeat for 11 months as they failed to take advantage of Arsenal's lunchtime defeat to Newcastle.

However, with Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku also returning the group head to Lisbon determined not to let injuries be an excuse for them and Walker thought he had to demonstrate that attitude at Bournemouth.