Kalvin Phillips has told Manchester City he is ready to leave in January, with Newcastle and Juventus among those interested in signing the England midfielder on loan until the end of the season.
Pep Guardiola has made clear that Phillips is not part of his plans after allowing him four appearances in the Premier League this season, all as a substitute. The 28-year-old is understood to have accepted he must leave City to secure his place in England’s squad for Euro 2024 having failed to make a first-team breakthrough under Guardiola since his £42m move from Leeds in the summer of 2022.
Representatives for Phillips are believed to have held talks with City in recent days in an attempt to find him a new club and expect the treble winners to sanction a loan despite City’s preference to find a buyer if possible. It remains to be seen whether any agreement would include an option to make the deal permanent, although there appears to be no future for him at the Etihad under Guardiola.
Newcastle have a longstanding interest in Phillips and are keen to strengthen their midfield after Sandro Tonali was banned for 10 months in October for breaching betting rules. Eddie Howe’s side appear to be the frontrunners, although they face a challenge to structure a deal that would keep within their stretched financial fair play budget. Several other Premier League clubs are understood to have shown interest, and Juventus have been in contact with Phillips’ representatives to explore a short-term deal but it is unclear whether he would be prepared to move overseas at this stage of his career.
Another potential stumbling block could be his £130,000-a-week salary, with City likely to demand that the majority, if not all, is covered.
Gareth Southgate said in November he was hopeful Phillips could find a solution, having retained him in his squad despite his lack of playing time for his club. “Between him, Pep and Txiki [Begiristain], I’m sure they’ll discuss the best route forward,” the England manager said. “We know the quality of his play and he was our player of the year a couple of years ago. We’d like him to be in a better rhythm, but there aren’t many players who can play in his position at the level.”
Another England international, Reece James is to undergo surgery on a hamstring injury that is expected to keep the Chelsea captain out of action for up to four months.
The right-back has undergone assessments on the problem and it is understood that part of the reason behind the delay over a final decision on the next step was so the Stamford Bridge club could find the best possible surgeon to carry out the procedure. James, who limped off during Chelsea’s defeat at Everton this month, will travel to Finland for the procedure.
Paris Saint-Germain’s Ousmane Demélé has twice had surgery on hamstring problems in Finland, where the care in that field is regarded as some of the finest in the world.
James has suffered seven hamstring injuries in the past three years and has previously avoided surgery. He injured a hamstring in August and did not return until October. He had looked short of sharpness before going off against Everton.
Chelsea will hope surgery helps the defender regain his explosiveness and become less susceptible to injury. They do not expect him to make a swift return and think he will be out for between three and four months.
That is likely to mean James fails to make England’s squad for Euro 2024. Southgate is not short of right-backs and wants to include physically robust players in his 23-man squad next summer. James missed last year’s World Cup with a knee injury. Chelsea will look to Malo Gusto to play at right-back during their captain’s absence.
