Gareth Southgate has warned Manchester United captain Harry Maguire and Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips potentially face “hard” competition for their England places amid their lack of club game time.
Maguire started just 16 games last season, of which just eight came in the Premier League. Meanwhile, Phillips only started his first Premier League game for City after they had won the title, starting in the 1-0 win over Chelsea in May. He made just four starts in all competitions, having missed nearly three months at the start of the season due to a shoulder injury.
Both Phillips and Maguire were included in Southgate’s England squad for this month’s Euro2024 qualifying wins over Malta and North Macedonia. Maguire started both matches while Phillips played 30 minutes as a substitute in the 7-0 thrashing of the latter on Monday.
