Details have emerged on why Newcastle United have not made a move to sign Kalvin Phillips from Manchester City this month.
The midfielder has been linked with a move away from the Manchester club during the current January transfer window, with the Tyneside club being reportedly interested in signing him.
However, with under two weeks left until the window closes, some behind-the-scenes details have come to light regarding Newcastle’s current stance on potentially launching a move to sign Phillips.
Newcastle reluctant to sign Phillips
A recent report from The Athletic had this to say on the matter.
It said: “Manchester City’s Kalvin Phillips is liked inside St James’ Park, but Newcastle will not pay a multi-million-pound loan fee for a player who has started two top-flight matches in two seasons and may take weeks to reach peak fitness.”
City signed the 28-year-old from Leeds United back in the 2022 summer transfer window in a deal worth £45m.
Since then, as the report mentioned, Phillips has found regular game time hard to come by due to injuries and having seemingly failed to convince Pep Guardiola of his ability.
In fact, the City boss said last month that he struggles to visualise the Englishman in his side.
Bearing in mind how the Citizens reportedly want a £7m loan fee for Phillips this month, added onto the fact that Newcastle are currently limited in their spending by FFP restrictions, it’s understandable why they are not convinced that the City outcast would be worth the investment, even on a short-term basis.
Also, with recent reports saying that West Ham United have been in talks with City over a possible loan deal for the former Leeds star, it seems that Newcastle could be out of the picture in terms of adding Phillips to their squad this month.
