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Kalvin Phillips loyalty to Leeds United will be tested this summer
Kalvin Phillips was quick to confirm what all Leeds fans wanted to hear in a recent interview, when he said he had no intention of leaving the club.
The midfield maestro, often known by his nickname ‘The Yorkshire Pirlo’, has seen his future flirted with in the media with talk of a £60m move to all of Aston Villa, Newcastle and Manchester United [MEN] at different points.
But all the whispers from the Leeds side have been the same; he wants a new contract and wants to stay – so long as they’re in the Premier League.
After Sunday’s [May 8th] defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, where former teammate Eddie Nketiah grabbed a brace, the Whites now sit in in the relegation zone with three games to go.
Level on points with Burnley but with a far worse goal difference, and a point behind Frank Lampard’s Everton who have a game in hand, relegation is no longer necessarily in their own hands.
They require a favour from Burnley at the very least, and then must take advantage of that with their own form. They’ll have to do it without Luke Ayling, suspended for the rest of the season and Stuart Dallas who is out injured.
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But should the worst case scenario come to the fore and Jesse Marsch’s side find themselves playing Championship football next season, Phillips will have a big decision to make.
Not just for himself, because his England place will be under threat with a World Cup looming just a few months later, but also for the club – who will take a huge financial hit should they go down.
The club would be unable to hand him a fresh contract on terms his ability and performances warrant, and regardless of whether he wants to stay or not that £60m transfer fee could help them massively.
It then comes down to Phillips and whether or not he’d leave the club in order to help them out. The money would be huge, and nobody would begrudge him the deal. It makes sense for all.
Equally though, the fans would love him even more (if that’s possible) if he stayed put once again and helped them try get back into the Premier League at the first attempt.
For someone who is a fan and knows what that means, it means he will have to make a choice and it could be that leaving actually helps the club more than staying.
In other Leeds news, a current Premier League striker has made his relegation prediction and Leeds fans won’t like it.