Kyle Walker says he is more comfortable with retiring from England, and he believes the decision can help him extend his Burnley career. The Kyle Walker right-back retired from international football in March after 96 caps and five major tournaments, and he is now pointing to James Milner as the kind of long club career he wants to follow.
Walker's view on the retirement call
Speaking to BBC Sport, Walker said: "Decisions in life you stand on what you do. I made that decision and it was a collaborative decision for me and my family."
He added: "It was a difficult decision but one I'm more at ease with now. It was something I wanted to do and felt it was right."
That is the clearest line in this discussion. Walker is not selling the retirement as a sacrifice for club football, but he is plainly saying he feels better about it now than he did when he stepped away.
Burnley and the Milner comparison
Walker also said he still feels good physically and thinks there is still plenty left in his club career. "I still feel good and still feel I'm playing at a good level," he said. "You look at someone like James Milner and how long he went on in his career. He retired very early [from England] and went on to achieve great things in football so hopefully I can follow in his footsteps."
The club workload supports that view. Walker played 36 of Burnley’s 38 top-flight games in the 2025-26 season, which is a heavy run for a player who has already stepped away from the international game.
Burnley finished 19th in the Premier League in 2025 with 22 points from 38 matches and a goal difference of -37, so the environment is hardly one where a right-back can coast. Walker has also posted a 6.82 average across his last 10 league matches, with three ratings of 7.0 or above in that span.
Walker’s point is not that England retirement guarantees a longer Burnley career. It is that the two can fit together, and his 36 league appearances show he is still being asked to do a proper job at club level.
The England door that may have stayed ajar
Walker did admit that the injury situation in the England camp might have opened a door. He said: "The way the squad and injuries fell, maybe I might have been in with a shout but I was not to foresee that. He [Tuchel] could've always called me and I would've represented my country, but he decided not to and that's how it goes. I was not expecting a call because I was retired."
The situation he described had England using Declan Rice as an emergency right-back, with Ezri Konsa and Jarell Quansah also deputising after injuries to Reece James and Tino Livramento.
That does not change Walker’s basic position. He has retired, he is at ease with that choice, and he wants to use the extra room in his schedule to stretch out what remains of his Burnley career. The next real test of that theory comes in Burnley’s league fixtures, not in an England squad announcement.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
