Kalvin Phillips could miss England game with Trent Alexander-Arnold playing in midfield
Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips could be heading for an absence from the England playing eleven vs Andorra after The Telegraph’s recent report.
The article is an interview with Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold, who’s played most of his career as a right-back and has become one of the world’s best in that role.
However, it is reported that he is likely to play for the Three Lions on Sunday in a central midfield position, which could see Phillips making way for him.
Phillips, since making his England debut, has been a mainstay in Gareth Southgate’s setup, so will be disappointed that he could miss out.
It would be either him or Rice dropping out, but given Alexander-Arnold’s tendencies to burst forward, the Leeds man is probably the one who will be making way.
While it would be harsh to make conclusions off of one game, a good performance by the Liverpool player could see Southgate being in two minds over who he deems a better fit in the Three Lions midfield.
We don’t think Phillips is as dispensable, however, but he will certainly be disappointed if he misses out on a game where he’s likely to see a lot of the ball and possibly fancy his chances at bagging an international goal – something like what Rice against Hungary.
Also, playing in front of a packed Wembley crowd never gets old and the 25-year-old will be hoping that Southgate doesn’t axe him from the playing eleven as, according to data by Opta, the team have conceded just one goal in the 16 matches and 1,331 minutes he has played for the Three Lions.
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