Tony Cascarino believes Kalvin Phillips made a grave error by deciding to sign for Manchester City in the first place.
Recently, the 28-year-old joined West Ham United on loan and sent the club and the fans a positive message for the rest of the season.
Kalvin Phillips could even make his debut for the Hammers as soon as on Thursday as they face AFC Bournemouth at the London Stadium.
Tony Cascarino says Kalvin Phillips made a mistake by joining Manchester City
With David Moyes reported to have been interested in him since 2018, the Englishman is expected to play much more regularly than he did under Pep Guardiola.
Anton Ferdinand believes the treble-winner should become an instant starter for the Irons.
But Tony Cascarino firmly believes that Kalvin Phillips made a huge mistake by joining Manchester City in the first place.
“If we rewind slightly, [Kalvin] Phillips was a fantastic player for Leeds in the Championship and in the Premier League. He was brilliant for them and England, by the way. He had at an incredible Euros, him and Declan Rice were superb in the middle”, Cascarino said on talkSPORT.
He continued, “It begs the question of, ‘Should you go to the biggest club at the time, that were winning everything and be second fiddle? Do you really think that’s a forward way of thinking for your career?’ Because yes, it comes with a lot more money, a longer contract so you’re safe financially but you lose everything by not playing.”
Tony Cascarino admits he struggles to understand why Kalvin Phillips was keen on a move to Manchester City when a superior player to him in Rodri was already at their disposal.
“I don’t get when players go to clubs and then know that the best player in your position is you will play very little football. I think it’s a bad idea. I don’t think you should do that. I think you should go, ‘You know what? I’ll join a club where I know I’m going to play a lot more.’ Rodri was there, he was always going to be Rodri.”
“He [Pep Guardiola] always plays one holding midfielder. He’s only playing Rodri and I think he’s [Kalvin Phillips] paid a price for it.”
Kalvin Phillips took a huge risk and it did not pay off
In our view, Tony Cascarino makes a fair point about Kalvin Phillips, who was expectedly benched by Rodri, as many predicted would be the case when he made his move to Manchester City.
Perhaps Phillips backed himself to push the Spanish international for minutes in the starting XI or even potentially play alongside him.
However, Pep Guardiola is not known for favouring a traditional box-to-box midfielder, as Gareth Southgate does for England and he also has never really played two defensive midfielders in his sides.
As a result, Tony Cascarino’s point is certainly worth taking into consideration as Kalvin Phillips’ risky decision to sign for the Premier League champions did not pay off.
