One of the main talking points at Manchester City in recent days has been the position of Kalvin Phillips under manager Pep Guardiola.
Kalvin Phillips has failed to make a huge impact at Manchester City since his transfer from Leeds United in the summer of 2022.
Phillips was superb during his time at Leeds, but he has been a peripheral figure at City.
In fact, you could argue that the Citizens would have won the Premier League, the UEFA Champions League and the FA Cup last season without even having the England international midfielder in their squad.
The 27-year-old really struggled last season and was even deemed overweight by Pep Guardiola at one point.
And, it seems that things are not going well for Phillips this season either.
Although Phillips started against Newcastle United in the EFL Cup in midweek and played relatively well, it is hard to see Guardiola pick him over Rodri when the latter returns from suspension.
The former Barcelona manager’s recent comments on Phillips have also been concerning.
Guardiola said this week that he is failing to get the best out of Phillips as Marcelo Bielsa did at Leeds, saying that the midfielder “sometimes struggles in a few things” in his style of play.
Alan Shearer on Manchester City duo Kalvin Phillips and Pep Guardiola
Newcastle United legend and BBC Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer does not think that Guardiola is a big fan of the £150,000-a-week (Spotrac) England international.
The pundit believes that the relationship between Guardiola and Phillips is not good.
Shearer said on The Rest is Football podcast: “I get the feeling all’s not well there. I get the feeling all’s not well with that relationship.
“I don’t know, I am just guessing, but judging by what he has said in the past and what he said about him last night, you just get the feeling all is not rosy with those two.”
Kalvin Phillips has a big decision to make regarding Manchester City future
Given the quality of Manchester City’s midfield players, it was going to be tough for Kalvin Phillips to play week in and week out in the first team.
And, it does take players a season to get used to Guardiola’s way.
However, it does not seem likely now that Phillips is going to change Pep Guardiola’s views on him.
The England international is 27 now.
He is at his peak.
Phillips needs to carefully consider his future.
I do not think that Phillips should leave City in the January transfer window.
He has to persevere.
He simply has to.
After all, City are arguably the best team in the world right now.
However, if the midfielder continues to struggle for playing time in the second half of the season, then I think that he should look to move away in the summer of 2024.
