Kyle Walker asked Vinicius Jr not to make him a meme after Man City’s first leg with Real Madrid
Posted by  badge Boss on May 17, 2023 - 04:49PM
Vinicius Junior and Kyle Walker hugged it out after their clash in Madrid (Picture: Getty Images)

Kyle Walker had no interest in going viral thanks to Vinicius Jr when played last week, asking the Brazilian not to repeat any showboating against him.

The two teams meet in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final on Wednesday night in Manchester after a 1-1 draw in the Spanish capital last week.

Vinicius scored Real Madrid’s goal but Walker proved a very capable opponent for the superb winger, doing well to keep him under control for most of the game.

The pair had a nice sporting moment at the end of the game and Walker revealed what he said to his foe, asking the 22-year-old not to make a meme of him in future.

‘I went to hug him because he tried to rainbow flick me, so it was kind of more like “please don’t try that again, I don’t want to be a meme or anything!”‘ said Walker. ‘I think boxers fight and have a good battle and then shake hands after and that is the respect I do have for him.

‘It’s the same with any other player, when it is a good game, you go and show them that respect because they deserve it. They are carrying a lot of pressure on their shoulders to take a massive club over the line in the .

‘They’ve not done well in their league and this is the last prize they need to go and win. You show them respect. Tomorrow night if chosen, I will give him the respect he deserves after the whistle, but before then it is dog-eat-dog.’

City boss Pep Guardiola admitted his team will have to be better in the home leg than they were in the away fixture, when a brilliant Kevin De Bruyne strike earned them a draw.

‘Hopefully you can see tomorrow,’ Guardiola said of his plans for the match. ‘Nothing special. I’m not overthinking, don’t worry guys, nothing different to what we’ve done, just more fluid and play a bit better.

‘The emotion is there and has to be high, but just this won’t beat a team like Madrid. We have to adjust something, do it a little better to create chances for our strikers and people up front to get more balls, transitions, the quality they have in all departments.’

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