Leeds United: Rory Smith urges Whites to sell Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha

New York Times journalist Rory Smith believes Leeds United should sell Raphinha and Kalvin Phillips this term and look to rebuild their team.

Leeds secured their Premier League survival with a 2-1 win at Brentford on the final day. Raphinha netted the opener from the penalty spot in that game, while Phillips also started the match. The two are key players for Jesse Marsch, but there has been heavy interest in the duo, with Barcelona said to be keen on the Brazilian and English clubs eyeing Phillips.

Speaking on BBC 5 Live’s Monday Night Club, Smith suggested Leeds should look to move the pair on.

He said: “To be honest, this is really brutal, and I’ll go home tonight and have lots of friends tell me that I shouldn’t have said this. I think the fact that there’s now no longer a buy-out clause in Raphinha’s contract – they’ve not gone down – means they can try and get a bit more out of Barcelona for him. If they get can get £50m, £60m, £70m, they probably need it.

“And even Kalvin Phillips, he’s from Wortley, he’s a local hero as a Leeds fan. But if you can get £130m for the pair of them, you can rebuild your team.”

TIF Thoughts on Raphinha and Phillips…

The two are Leeds’ most valuable assets by some distance. Raphinha is the club’s top goalscorer this term, having found the back of the net 11 times, while Phillips was a key member of England’s XI as they reached the Euro 2020 final last year, and had he been available more often this season, the Elland Road side may not have found themselves so close to relegation.

This campaign’s league position is a clear indication that improvement and reinforcements are needed. If Leeds can get big money for the two players, they could reinvest the proceeds in several other areas and ultimately have a squad, rather than just a first XI, that is equipped for top-tier football.