West Ham United are looking to bolster their squad by signing Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips, who is desperate for game-time.
This is as per reports from Sky Sports, which add that Newcastle United, Crystal Palace and Everton are also interested in signing Phillips.
City acquired Phillips in a deal worth £42 million from Leeds United in July 2022 but he has struggled to become a first-team regular. Since joining, he has made just 31 appearances for the club across competitions, playing 911 minutes in total. He has scored just one goal for the club. This season, he has made just 10 appearances, completing just two full games having started in them.
With Pep Guardiola preferring a midfield-dominant, possession-based style, Manchester City are stacked with options. Rodri, who is the midfield anchor, has rarely missed any games through injuries. If he gets suspended, Guardiola has chosen other options rather than Phillips.
This has prompted the player’s camp to look for exit options, with multiple Premier League clubs circling in with interest.
Kalvin Phillips is a combative and energetic midfielder who started out as a box-to-box operator. He was converted into a defensive-minded player by former Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa during their time together, and enjoyed a great few seasons under the Argentine. Phillips has a varied range of passing and can play a tiki-taka style game as well as long balls. He is good at covering large distances on the pitch and does both offensive and defensive duties well.
Manchester City have made the player available this month, with clubs preferring a loan option rather than a direct purchase. However, City are demanding a £5 million loan fee for Phillips, which could prove to be a stumbling block.
The Cityzens are also demanding that part or all of Kalvin Phillips’ £135,000 per week wages be paid by the loaning club.
It remains to be seen which clubs come in and what kind of deal they offer.
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