Huge update on Kalvin Phillips back to Leeds as West Ham source makes mammoth claim

Leeds United’s chances of bringing Manchester City outcast Kalvin Phillips back to Elland Road have been given a big boost following a significant update on the West Ham loanee.

The 28-year-old’s career is at something of a crossroads. His £42m move from Leeds to Man City in 2022 has, arguably, been an abject failure and he has barely played of late at the Hammers, after joining David Moyes’ men on loan in January.

Phillips, who has struggled with injuries and form in the past two seasons, arguably reached the nadir when City boss Pep Guardiola said the midfielder was “overweight” on his return to the Premier League side following the 2022 World Cup.

Last July, he told BBC Radio 5 Live: “To be honest, it was a little hard to take [the criticism], just because of how much it was oversized and how many people started talking about it. I know the manager made his comments but I respected them.

“I, for me, wasn’t overweight, but obviously the manager saw it in a different way. I took it, did my best to try and get as fit as possible and I was on the bench for the Leeds game straight after that. I was fit for every game since then.

“It was just one of those things where it was a misunderstanding between me and some staff members. You will see a lot more of it in the documentary and how I got into it all.”

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Guardiola later apologised for those remarks but it did nothing to improve Phillips’ fortunes. To date, the England international has made 31 appearances for the Cityzens but just six of those have been starts.

He has not been picked in Gareth Southgate’s recent Three Lions squads, his chances of being picked for Euro 2024 appear bleak, and he is now out of favour at West Ham as well – having not started a game since early March.

This is a far cry from when he was voted England’s Player of the Year in 2021, was starring for Leeds after ending their 16-year stay outside the Premier League in 2020, and multiple top sides coveted his signature.

Former Leeds man ‘desperate’ for Elland Road return

However, there way me a way out of this difficult situation. According to Football Insider, Phillips – who made headlines for appearing to swear at a West Ham fan after being lambasted by the individual in late March – is ‘desperate’ to sign for Leeds this summer.

The Championship side have reportedly considered bringing their former academy product back to Elland Road but whether he would join them if they fail to earn promotion to the Premier League remains to be seen.

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Due to his high-profile errors for West Ham, the east London outfit are understood to have no plans to extend his stay at the club. Moreover, the report claims West Ham coaches are convinced that ‘all Phillips is interested in is playing for Leeds again’.

Potential transfer stumbling block

However, much of that depends on which division Leeds are in next season. Daniel Farke’s men sit second in the Championship with one match remaining but third-placed Ipswich Town can leapfrog the Peacocks into the final automatic promotion spot if they pick up at least a point in their game in hand against Coventry City on Tuesday night – before a final day shootout this weekend.

The Whites will be under pressure to sell some of their prized assets if they fail to secure an immediate return to the Premier League this summer, therefore, a Phillips return may be unrealistic – especially as some reports suggest City will want £30m for him, and that is way out of the Yorkshire outfit’s price range.

Moreover, they are well stocked in that area of the pitch, with Ethan Ampadu and Ilia Gruev both thriving as defensive midfielders this term. If Leeds do go up, then this becomes more of a possibility but City are likely to want to recoup as much from their £42m outlay on Phillips as possible, particularly as his contract at the Etihad runs until 2028.