Gareth Southgate has admitted that Kalvin Phillips' struggle to win a place in Manchester City's team could wreck the midfielder's hopes of going to the World Cup.
Phillips will be sidelined for a minimum of six weeks following an operation after he was injured during a charity friendly against Barcelona last month - and faces a race to be fit in time to make the plane to Qatar.
But even if the 26-year-old wins his battle, he must then find a way to convince Southgate to take him to the Middle East by breaking into Pep Guardiola's City team.