Kalvin Phillips ready to leave Leeds United, Manchester City willing to spend £60m
Leeds star Kalvin Phillips is ready to leave Elland Road this summer and Manchester City are willing to pay £60m to sign him, according to The Mail [June 11].
Phillips’ future has been a hot topic for all of 2022 after the club rejected a bid from West Ham in January, before interest from Manchester United [MEN], Aston Villa and more recently Manchester City [Telegraph] for the summer window became apparent.
With City set to make their interest formal later this month after the international break [Telegraph, June 8], it’s now being reported that they would be willing to part with £60m to sign the England ace.
Phillips is reportedly in the midst of appointing a new agent, after his contract with Palm Sports Management expired recently.
They will be tasked with handling negotiations for his next contract, whether that be with Leeds or another club. The Whites want to offer him a new deal, but have “privately” accepted [The MIrror, June 9] that it would be hard to stand in his way if City come in with a bid.
Inevitable
It now seems inevitable that this is a deal that will happen, with the Whites having little leverage in a deal and Man City having no problem paying their reported asking price.
Phillips has shown himself to be a quality midfielder who can operate at the highest level, although the 2021/22 season wasn’t his best as he suffered with several injuries.
But City see him as the ideal replacement for Fernandinho and if he can go elsewhere to challenge for trophies regularly and not join a rival, then he deserves it.
With just two years remaining on his contract, which he signed while in the Championship, he is still on a relatively low wage and while the club and fans would love him to stay they just can’t compete with City.
It will be a sad day when he goes but it’s nothing short of what he deserves, so fans can be happy that it’s at least a deal that makes sense for all parties.
In other Leeds news, club to make decision on rarely-seen first-team ace who could leave this summer