Pep Guardiola is rarely stumped by anything in football but it took the Manchester City boss slightly longer to figure out Kalvin Phillips.
The term ‘flop’ is thrown around a lot in modern football but it is an accurate description of Kalvin Phillips since his move to Manchester.
It was seen as a coup when Manchester City won the race to sign him from Leeds United back in 2022, but the 28-year-old has suffered a steep and harsh fall from grace.
He struggled for minutes at the start of his City career and his chances of getting on the pitch only worsened when he returned from the World Cup and was called ‘overweight’ by Pep Guardiola.
A loan move to West Ham was designed to get Phillips’ career back on track, but a woeful six months in the capital inflicted another blow to his reputation.
HITC understand that City made Phillips available on the transfer market this summer after his struggles at the club. He has been linked with moves to Everton and Aston Villa.
Pep Guardiola has solved the Kalvin Phillips dilemma
It is hard to point to a single good performance by Phillips in a City shirt despite his two years at the club.
His workrate and tenacity are not in doubt, but he appears to lack the technical ability to play in midfield for City.
Guardiola pointed to this himself, stating that Phillips “struggles in the small spaces” when playing in midfield.
That was perhaps Guardiola’s thinking when he experimented with Phillips as a centre-back in their latest pre-season test against Barcelona.
Phillips started alongside Josko Gvardiol in the heart of defence on Wednesday morning as City drew 2-2 with Barcelona in the United States.
Kalvin Phillips vs Barcelona
Eyebrows were raised when Phillips started in defence, but the 28-year-old put in one of his best performances in a City shirt.
He ended the match with 94 accurate passes – the most of any player on the pitch – with a passing accuracy of 93 percent.
He also won two ground duels and made three interceptions – all while still managing to create two chances from centre-back.
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Sure, it is just one performance – but it is enough to catch the attention of Premier League managers who may be tempted to roll the dice on reviving Phillips’ career.
A fresh start in a new position could be exactly what is needed for the England international and Guardiola has just revealed the blueprint to getting the best out of him.
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