Get the latest Boro stories straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter Enter your email Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Josh Walker never imagined he would even go to India on a holiday - now he describes it as the place which saved his football career.

At a glance, a move to a newly formed club in an unestablished league seemed a bizarre move for a young player armed with pedigree.

It was certainly bold. It was a gamble.

But Walker was at the point in his career where he had to take a gamble - and the move to Bengaluru, he says, was precisely what he needed.

The former England Under-20s captain almost felt like a passenger as his career quickly spiralled in England.

Ten years after winning the FA Youth Cup with Boro, he was in and out of Gateshead’s side in the Conference; three years after scoring against Bayern Munich for Aberdeen in the UEFA Cup he found himself being shuffled from club to club on loan moves.

Then an opportunity arose last summer, the chance to play in India in the I-League.

“I’ll be honest, I’d lost my way back home, not just in football but in general,” says Walker.

His tone is genuine, his outlook brutally honest.

“This was a chance for me but it was my last chance. I knew I was in last chance saloon.

“I was going over the other side of the world, I was making massive sacrifices, if this didn’t work out then that was it.”

Other than the fact John Johnson, a former teammate of Walker’s at Boro, would be waiting for him in the arrivals lounge, the midfielder didn’t have the faintest idea of what to expect when he landed in India.

Johnson had signed for Bengaluru the year earlier after making more than 100 appearances for Northampton. His role in convincing Walker to head to Asia was integral.

For that Walker will be forever grateful. He signed a one-year deal upon his arrival, being classed as a “marquee player” due to the fact he had played in the English top flight.

He’s recently extended that stay by another year. Walker feels like he’s the fittest he’s ever been - but more importantly, he’s content.

“I love it out here, it’s gone really well for me,” says the 26-year-old.

“It makes such a difference just to feel settled. By the time I was 22 I’d played for however many clubs and I was just having a few months here and a few months there.

“You get yourself in a team and before you know it you’re back out again and moving somewhere else.

“I have been fortunate to get this chance and it wasn’t something I wanted to let slip.

“It was a gamble but I’ve worked hard and I feel like I’m getting my rewards.”

His reward almost came in the form of a league title. After winning the Federation Cup - the Indian equivalent of the FA Cup - Bengaluru had the chance of adding a league title.

The season decider was perfectly poised, the fixture predictor had played a blinder.

Table-toppers Mohun Bagan would travel to Bengaluru, managed by Englishman Ashley Westwood, on the final day two points ahead in the title race.

A point would do for the visitors, a home win would mean Walker’s first season would be capped of with a title.

“We were 1-0 up with five minutes to go and then they equalised,” he says, taking up the story.

“It stayed like that so they won the title. It was absolutely guttering to be honest, to go so close.

“There were 25,000 fans there that day, the atmosphere was absolutely incredible.

“The fans are just so fanatical, if you ever watch the IPL cricket on the TV at home that gives you an idea of what they’re like.”

There’s an air of intrigue about the unknown aspects of the game in India: the attendances, the lifestyle, the standard of football.

“I get asked that a lot,” says Walker, when quizzed about the standard in the league.

“To be honest, it’s a lot better than I thought it would be and it’s a lot better than what people will imagine.

“There are some really good players here and I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them started getting moves in the next few years.

“Obviously it’s hard to compare with a standard back home but I’d say some of the players were definitely capable of playing in League One or the Championship.

“To be fair, Bengaluru are one of the most professional teams I’ve played for as well. We train morning and afternoon a couple of times a week, before home games we’ll stay in a hotel and we’ll always travel and stay in nice hotels before an away game.

“We don’t cut corners. The manager is focused on fitness and I’d say I’m definitely the fittest I’ve been since I was at Middlesbrough now.”

Walker’s joy at how the move has turned out is a mix of delight and relief. The sacrifices have paid off.

He left his girlfriend and three-year-old daughter at home in Edinburgh when he moved to India.

“That was hard,” he says, “it still is.

“That was one of the massive sacrifices I had to make.”

With the Indian league finishing in June and not starting again until January, Walker must stay fit during the six-month off-season.

He flew home this weekend to spend some time with his young family and is hoping to find a club close to home to train with before he heads back to India.

This wasn’t how Walker imagined it. The Newcastle-born midfielder was part of the furniture in England’s youth set-up as a teenager, working through the ranks with the likes of Daniel Sturridge, Theo Walcott and Fabian Delph.

He made his league debut in that famous Academy-packed Boro team at Fulham in 2006 and burst into the senior side brimming with hype and confidence. He was the next off the conveyor belt, or so it seemed.

Walker, through sheer confidence rather than arrogance, never imagined not making it at the top level. But he harbours no resentment whatsoever and doesn’t shirk away from the question when asked why it didn’t work out at Boro or any of the other eight English clubs he’s played for.

“A lot of it was my own fault,” says Walker, who made eight appearances for Boro.

“I wasn’t patient enough and that cost me in the end.

“I come through as a young lad playing for England and I suddenly found myself involved with the first team.

“Once I’d had a taste of it I just wanted to play and looking back, with the greatest of respect, a couple of my loan moves were bad choices at that time.”

Aberdeen certainly wasn’t a bad choice. Walker made eight appearances during a stint up north in 2008, famously scoring in a man of the match performance in the UEFA Cup against Bayern Munich.

Back to Boro and Walker adds: “People used to ask me whether it was this manager’s fault or that manager’s fault why it didn’t work out but I would never point the finger at somebody else like that.”

That said, Walker is quick to admit he was gutted when Steve McClaren left Boro in 2006.

“Had McClaren stayed things might have been a bit different,” he says.

“That’s nothing to do with the managers who came in after him but I was so highly thought of by McClaren.

“He was absolutely brilliant as well. To get that club to the UEFA Cup final, to keep putting in the young lads like he did, he was just brilliant.

“He’s still the best manager I’ve ever played for and a lot of the young lads were gutted when he left, he was never scared to give us a chance.”

Walker left for Watford in 2010. He would soon join Stevenage on loan and then Northampton and then Stevenage again and then Scunthorpe.

After a permanent move to Scunthorpe didn’t work out as planned, Walker dropped out of the Football League for the first time to join Gateshead.

When he was released by Gateshead, Walker was at a crossroads. He took the gamble and the gamble has paid off.

“When I was a bit younger I used to have regrets and think about where I maybe could have been now but that’s not the case anymore,” says Walker.

“I’d 100% love to come back and play in England at some point but I’m not sure when and where.

“My confidence is back now.

“So is my belief, I’m enjoying my football again.”