What Walker told Tuchel about Milan and why Ashley Cole record had an impact | OneFootball

Kyle Walker has revealed that he spoke to England national team head coach Thomas Tuchel before signing off on his move from Milan in January, explaining that he wanted to ensure he would still be considered for the Three Lions despite leaving the Premier League, and has also revealed that he wants to become the second ever black player to reach 100 caps for England.

The 95-time England international spoke in-depth about the process of joining Milan from Manchester City on his eponymous Kyle Walker Podcast on BBC Sounds.

Walker is currently on loan from Manchester City, but his contract with the reigning Premier League champions expires in the summer. Reports at the time of his move suggested that there is already an agreement over a permanent contract with the Rossoneri, but the 34-year-old insists there are still several formalities to hash out.

Walker on start to Milan life: ‘It’s not been a great season so far’

MILAN, ITALY – FEBRUARY 18: Kyle Walker of AC Milan reacts during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Knockout Play-off second leg match between AC Milan and Feyenoord at San Siro Stadium on February 18, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

It has been a whirlwind season for the former Tottenham right-back, who left City midway through the season to join Milan, who had just been taken over by Sergio Conceicao a few weeks earlier.

Results have not been the best for the Rossoneri throughout the 2024-25 campaign, but Walker believes the team have enough talent to set the record straight next season.

Opening up about what the first few weeks at Milanello were like as a 34-year-old moving abroad for the first time in his career, Walker said: “You go in there, you know that people are looking at you, you know they’re gonna be watching what you do, trying to emulate my certain routines that I do. And it’s just (a case of) trying to set an example.

“I think I’ve come here at a good point in my career where I’ve won a few things at City. It’s about passing on the experience.

“Hopefully, the quality we’ve got in the dressing room is frightening. Listen, we all know it’s not been a great season so far, we can finish the season well. With the quality we have, we need to make sure, with the manager, with the players that whatever happens next season, that we hit the ground running and start at the tempo that we need to start at.”

Walker: ‘Certain clubs in the world you can’t say no to’

Official: Kyle Walker joins Milan from Manchester City (picture via www.acmilan.com/it)

Walker went on to speak about the moment it properly sunk in that he was a Milan player: “As a footballer you don’t really think about things. It probably hit me about three weeks into being here, I was like ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve just upped and left’. But in football when certain opportunities come, you have to take it.

“For me, to experience a different league, a different culture, for me to play for a club like Milan, I don’t think you can turn that down. There are certain clubs in the world you can’t say no to.”

Walker explained that to some, it might have looked like his Milan move came out of the blue, but he insists that he had been thinking about it throughout January.

“The talks didn’t happen overnight, there were talks probably for about a week, five days. I had my stuff packed, I was ready, I wasn’t playing for Manchester City, so I wanted to play football and I wanted to come to Europe.

“That was a big thing for me, to either stay in the Premier League or come to a big team in Europe because my ultimate objective is trying to get to 100 caps for my country.”

Walker: ‘I want to represent my country and get to 100 caps’

LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 21: Kyle Walker of England looks on during the FIFA World Cup 2026 European Qualifier between England and Albania at Wembley Stadium on March 21, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

After the March internationals, Walker is now five England appearances away from reaching the prized 100-cap landmark. Only one black English player has achieved that feat previously.

“The only other black player to get 100 caps is Ashley Cole, deservedly. If I can be the second black player to reach 100 caps, you look at the likes of Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand, these players that never got to 100 caps, if I could go and do that, it would be a great honour,” Walker said.

“It was a big relief when (Tuchel) gave me the call and we spoke, I spoke about the move to Milan with him and said ‘I want to stay in Europe because I want to represent my country and get to 100 caps.”