It looked for all the world like Kalvin Phillips was going to leave Manchester City last year. Interested clubs were circling. Pep Guardiola was all but erecting ‘farewell and good luck’ banners from the statements he was making.
As for the player, with next summer’s Euros looming in the distance surely it was imperative that he moved on and secured first team football elsewhere. After all, Gareth Southgate has proven himself many times over to be a loyal individual, but there are limits.
So we waited for the almost inevitable loan deal to be struck. Would it be Juventus? That was an intriguing proposition. Or Newcastle? Liverpool meanwhile were in the process of overhauling their midfield and were said to be keen.
Only then the transfer window officially closed and Phillips remained a Man City employee.
We can only speculate as to why this was, but reliable reports all point to the decision ultimately being the player’s and this confuses, especially if we also give credence to other rumours that have been doing the rounds.
Because it is the assertion of some that on signing Phillips for £52m from Leeds in the summer of 2022, Manchester City quickly realised they had made a mistake. In training, his close control wasn’t at the impeccable standard needed for Guardiola’s intricate blueprint when his team had the ball.
As worrying, when receiving the ball with his back to goal, he didn’t have the consummate ability to shield and release at a level that Rodri possesses, the player he was brought in to play alongside on occasions and understudy the rest of the time.
Guardiola himself has stated that Phillips perfectly suited the ‘chaos’ of Bielsa-ball but struggles with his more disciplined demands.
A shoulder injury further complicated matters at the start of his inaugural season at the Etihad but even once fit his appearance record is stark and damning.
Phillips made just two starts in 2022/23, both late-on when City’s Premier League odds were proven right and the title was sewn up.
Halfway through the campaign, Guardiola publicly criticised the midfielder for returning from Qatar ‘overweight’ and ‘not in the right condition to train’.
Staying with the England set-up, for so long Phillips was a regular starter, one half of a double-pivot alongside Declan Rice. Now though we were beginning to see the consequences of his reputation becoming diminished, as much as his lack of game-time.
As Jude Bellingham became a global superstar at the World Cup, and a new-look Three Lions midfield emerged, Phillips made only two substitute appearances out there. Both times, England were three goals to the good.
In the seven games since, he has started only three.
And so to this term, and if the player was deluding himself that things may change for the better at the home of the league champions, even fewer appearances soon put a stop to that.
In the first half of 2023/24, Phillips saw just 89 minutes of league action during a period when Rodri looked in dire need of a rest. When the Spaniard was suspended for three games youngsters were picked ahead of the peripheral star, or players played out of position.
And so to West Ham, and the feeling is that the 28-year-old has left his move too late to dramatically improve his chances of selection this summer.
This is less based on the timing, and more on the sheer number of midfielders who have come on leaps and bounds these past 18 months, months he has spent in the wilderness.
As for the Hammers as a destination, they may not be involved in the Premier League relegation odds this time around, but it’s still perfectly possible to put in a succession of solid performances and remain overlooked on the international scene. Just ask James Ward-Prowse.
Besides, two bad mistakes, that have each led to the concession of a goal, in his first two outings is hardly the most auspicious of fresh starts.
Two years ago, Kalvin Phillips was a highly respected England regular. A fifty million pound talent. And now he’s not.
These next few months are going to be crucial in determining how much of his former standing can be reclaimed.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*
