Kyle Walker has posted a pre-match motivational video he sent to his Manchester City teammates ahead of their Champions League last-16 first leg win at Sporting Lisbon.
Walker was suspended for the trip to Portugal after his red card in the last group game at RB Leipzig, with John Stones deputising at right-back in his place at Sporting.
Despite the makeshift defence, City were impressive in their 5-0 win in Lisbon and are strong favourites to qualify for the quarter-finals ahead of the second leg at the Etihad.
Even though Walker was not part of the squad on Tuesday night, he still made sure he sent a pre-match team talk to motivate his teammates and encourage them to bring a positive result back to Manchester.
Wearing an England cap from international duty, and his runner-up medal from last season's Champions League final defeat, Walker apologised for missing the game and told City to take another step closer to winning the competition this year.
Also holding a Man of the Match award from a previous Champions League game, he said: "Hey guys hope you're well. I just want to say first and foremost sorry I couldn't be there tonight to be cheering you on. I'll be watching from home.
"Make sure we get a good victory and a good position going into the second leg. I want to change this [medal] from a silver one to a gold one.
"I feel what we're doing and achieving as a team, this will be the icing on the cake to end up in a final again and hopefully win a Champions League. All the best tonight lads and I'll see you when you get back."
After the 5-0 success, Walker posted the video to social media, saying: "I’m glad my pre-match team talk worked…well done boys!"
Another player who missed out, Jack Grealish, also showed his admiration for City's performance, writing on Instagram: "Just unbelievable boys."
