Kalvin Phillips has reaffirmed his intentions of staying at Manchester City next season.
The midfielder brought an end to his debut season at the Etihad Stadium this month having won his first Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League titles.
With the 27-year-old not being particularly prominent in the team, some questions have been raised about his future in Pep Guardiola’s squad, in addition to seeing West Ham United linked with a move for him.
However, the Englishman has now come out and addressed the matter and what he’s looking to do moving forward.
Phillips looking to stay at City
Speaking to journalist Mike Minay, Phillips said this about his debut season at City and what his future could look like.
He said: “My intention is to stay. We’ve just won the Treble, so there is no reason for me to leave. I cannot give it 12 months & say I am not playing so I am going to leave. With many players at City, it can take quite a while to cement yourself into the team.
“I spoke to quite a few of the players: Nathan Ake being one, Jack [Grealish]. They all said the first 12 months were the hardest of their City careers but after that it doesn’t become easy, but easier. I’m just going to go away for the off-season, enjoy myself and then come back fighting.
“Just know how difficult it is to understand the way Pep wants to play and how quickly you need to adapt to play in his system. I am on the brink of almost getting it. Obviously there is a little bit of work in pre-season and hopefully be alright.”
Looking back over his debut season at the Etihad Stadium since arriving from Leeds United last summer in a deal worth £45m, the England international made 21 appearances for City across all competitions but only started four of them.
With that in mind, it’s easy to see why Phillips has felt the need to address his future at the club given how hard he found getting regular game time last season.
Now that the midfielder has said he wants to stay where he is and work hard to become more of a prominent player for City, this shows the determination he has and how much he wants to succeed there, when it could be easy for him to move away and join a club where he’d be guaranteed regular minutes.
