Kyle Walker’s talents deserved so much more than his crude tabloid caricature | Jonathan Liew

One of the most successful full-backs of the modern era, Walker has been dogged by a prurient obsession with his personal life

England ace Kyle Walker has SENSATIONALLY asked Manchester City for a divorce – and pals fear the sharp decline of his recovery pace could be to blame. According to insiders, jilted Pep Guardiola was HEARTBROKEN on hearing about Walker’s decision to walk out on their seven-year partnership, having publicly defended the 0.06-non-penalty-expected-goal-contributions-per-90-minutes right-back on numerous occasions this season. One source exclusively told the Guardian: “It’ll be an amicable split given everything they’ve been through together. But there’s a mutual recognition that a club of City’s standing can’t go on carrying a player averaging 7.7 possession losses per game and a career‑low 5.8 final-third passes per 90.”

Walker, 34, dropped his BOMBSHELL news last week to City’s head honcho Txiki Begiristain, 60, amid persistent rumours over a budding romance with Italian stallions Milan, 125, whose new coach Sérgio Conceição, 50, could see Walker, 34, as a better fit for his dynamic, transition-based defensive buildup style than either Emerson Royal, 25, or Davide Calabria, 28.

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NASCAR: Mike Wallace not approved for Daytona 500 bid

NASCAR competition officials confirmed Monday that driver Mike Wallace is not approved for his previously announced attempt to qualify for this year’s Daytona 500. MBM Motorsports had announced Jan. 2 that the 65-year-old Wallace would drive the team’s No. 66 Ford in its bid for the “Great American Race” (Feb. 16, 2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, […]