Micah Richards has told Match of the Day 2, which was broadcast by the BBC, that he felt Kalvin Phillips was offered no support by his Leeds United teammates yesterday.
Leeds were beaten 6-2 by Manchester United at Old Trafford, with Phillips hooked at half-time by Marcelo Bielsa.
The Whites had gone in 4-1 down at the break, with Phillips hardly covering himself in glory.
But Richards felt sorry for the England international, as he felt he was hung out to dry by his Leeds teammates.
“You see the space. I’m a big admirer of Phillips, but he got left alone today,” Richards said. “He didn’t have any help for his teammates and there is so much space for McTominay to run through.
“It just kept happening throughout the game, it’s like they didn’t learn from their mistakes.
“He’s been dragged all over the place, and that’s what he’s been told to do, go man to man. Against anyone who is having a good day they will get exposed.”
Phillips is actually no stranger to being left fairly isolated in Leeds midfield, but he didn’t have his usual influence on the game yesterday.
The enforcer simply found no way to stop the flow of attacks from the Red Devils, who cut Leeds open time after time.
Even after Phillips was withdrawn at half-time, Leeds still struggled to halt Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side’s momentum, and the scoreline could have been heavier if it wasn’t for some excellent saves from Illan Meslier.
Phillips will surely be back in Leeds’ starting line-up when they return to action against Burnley, where they will be hoping to put in a much improved display.
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