Kalvin Phillips, who left Leeds United 18 months ago, is on the move again this month.
Phillips left his boyhood club for Manchester City in the summer of 2022 for a fee of about £42 million, and despite winning the treble last season, the move has not worked out.
Despite being a significant player at Leeds, Phillips has only started two Premier League games for City in his whole career, both of which came after they were mathematically confirmed champions the previous season. It is apparent that he has been influenced.
With the EUROs coming up in the summer, Phillips has acknowledged the need to play more often and is expected to sign a loan deal with West Ham United for the remainder of the season.
As his time at City comes to an end, Phillips can reflect on his decision to leave Leeds honestly. However, according to the Daily Mail, the 28-year-old still believes it was the best option for his career because he leaves the club a better player than when he entered.
Phillips stands by the City decision.
Phillips has revealed that his confidence has been low during his tenure at City, even calling on former Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa at his lowest point last season.
However, low confidence levels do not always indicate that he has regressed. Simply put, he has never been given enough games to find his finest form.
At the same time, Rodri was and continues to be the best holding midfielder in the world, and City are just not the same without him. With that in mind, ordinary football was not going to happen.
Training with guys like him, Kevin de Bruyne, Phil Foden, and others every day will definitely have improved him as a player, even if he has not been able to demonstrate it on the field.
With that said, the focus is now on him to demonstrate his abilities at West Ham, a team closer to his own level. If he fails to perform, questions will be raised about why he ever left Leeds.
