Journalist Conor McGilligan has revealed why he believes Leeds United should look to sell star man Kalvin Phillips this summer, amid rumours that Manchester City are looking at the 26-year-old.
The Yorkshire team are looking to rebuild under manager Jesse Marsch after a disappointing season where they narrowly escaped relegation after finishing 17th, just three points above the drop zone.
So far this summer, they have recruited well, with two Red Bull Salzburg players joining the club in Brenden Aaronson and Rasmus Kristensen. However, they have had numerous rumours surrounding some of their current players, including Raphinha, Jack Harrison and Phillips.
The latter has recently been hotly linked with a move to Premier League champions Manchester City, and McGilligan has claimed that he would be open to the England international moving away from the club for key reasons.
He said on the One Leeds Fan Channel: “Am I that bothered by a £50m transfer fee for Kalvin Phillips? I’m not. I think that’s more than reasonable because there are several factors that are involved in it, really, and I feel that this is probably where Kalvin’s stock is the highest.
“I don’t know if it’s going to get higher from a Leeds perspective, and I think this is probably the highest value that we will get for this individual.
“He’s got two years left on his deal. Defensive midfielders don’t go for that sort of money.
“As I say, with his contract as well, his sell-on value is going to be something Leeds are going to have to keep a real eye on with his contract going down.
“When we’re looking at his injury record as well, there were some people who seem to be under this false understanding that Kalvin has only missed a fraction of games. That’s just not true.”
TIF Thoughts on McGilligan’s comments…
While Phillips has shown himself to be one of the best English midfielders in the league, when looking at the reasons McGilligan outlined for why they should sell him, it only makes sense Leeds cash in on him as soon as possible.
The ‘Yorkshire Pirlo’ has not managed to complete a Premier League season since Leeds re-joined the top flight in 2020/21 season. In his first season back, he only made 29 appearances and last season he only made 20. To receive up to £50m for a player who doesn’t feature week-in, week-out for the club would be a huge opportunity to rebuild the squad and bring in someone more reliable.
Leeds have a big summer ahead of them in order to push themselves back up the table, and we feel a lump sum of £50m would significantly help their chances of signing top-quality players who Marsch can develop in his new system.
Should Leeds sell Phillips?Yes
No
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