Gabby Agbonlahor has stated that ‘it scares me’ the number of minutes Kalvin Phillips has earned since leaving Leeds United for Manchester City.
The former striker stated that he would take Phillips to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar later on this month, but he wouldn’t hand the England midfielder a single minute of action.
In the summer, Phillips left his boyhood club at Elland Road in order to take his career to the next level at the champions of England.
But the 26-year-old, who was injured for large parts of last season when in Leeds colours, has only played 13 minutes of football this term.
A recent shoulder injury, which stems back from his days in Yorkshire and that required surgery, has kept him on the sidelines, but he has just returned to training ahead of the World Cup.
Agbonlahor pointed out the great partnership both Declan Rice and Phillips built at Euro 2020, but stated that if everyone is fit, then he is no longer selecting the Man City man, as he told talkSPORT (02/11/22 at 8:50 am).
“I am thinking who have we got as a DM, Declan Rice?” said Agbonlahor. “I think he (Phillips) goes, but he could go and not play a minute.
“No chance (starting Phillips over Bellingham or Rice). I think, when everyone is fit, Phillips wouldn’t start in that midfield. I think it would be Bellingham, Rice and Mount, as a three.
“But, when you get to the latter stages, you might play a Brazil or a France, then you might look at it and think Rice, Phillips and Bellingham. If Phillips was fit, just to add that extra help to the back three, like in the Euros, nothing was getting past them. Cutting off the space.
“But it just scares me, the lack of minutes. I don’t like it.”
WILL PHILLIPS EARN THE MINUTES?
Just like Jack Grealish last season, many questioned why Phillips moved to the Etihad this summer, given that he would be competing with Rodri for a starting spot.
Whilst Grealish can play across the front three, someone like Phillips wouldn’t play in any other role other than as a number six.
Added to that, Pep Guardiola doesn’t play two defensive-minded players in the middle of the park, so once again, it restricts Philips’ game time.
Whilst the hard-hitting has stepped up a level in his career, he needs to hope, in the long run, this doesn’t affect the progression of his career.
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