West Ham United are interested in acquiring the services of Manchester City defensive midfielder Kalvin Phillips.
According to Evening Standard, West Ham United are keen on signing Kalvin Phillips ahead of next season. The Hammers are preparing for the possible departure of Declan Rice ahead of next season. And, they have identified his international teammate Phillips as a potential target.
West Ham have tried signing the 27-year-old in the past. The Irons put forward a £50 million bid to sign Phillips from Leeds in last year’s January transfer window. However, David Moyes’s idea to reunite the midfield partnership with Rice that drove England to the Euro 2020 final failed.
Phillips eventually ended up joining Manchester City ahead of the ongoing season. But, things have not gone according to plan for the England international as he has hardly been on the pitch this season. The 27-year-old has featured in a total of 14 matches but has been on the pitch for just over 350 minutes.
And, with the Euro 2024 around the corner, he might want more game time to keep himself in contention. West Ham United are keen on having him in their ranks. They have tried in the past and failed but as per reports, they are likely to return for his services in the summer.
It is pretty much certain that the Hammers will lose out on Declan Rice in the summer. The 24-year-old has already rejected multiple contract extension offers, and a lot of clubs are ready to enter a bidding war for the England international.
With Rice set to leave the club, Moyes is keen on signing a world-class defensive midfielder. The Scottish manager is a big fan of the former Leeds midfielder and wants him in his ranks. Phillips is someone who could fill the big boots of Rice and his high work rate will surely help their cause.
However, it will be interesting to see if they can manage to convince City to sell the 27-year-old. Pep Guardiola’s team look set to lose out on Ilkay Gundogan and possibly Bernardo Silva this summer. As a result, Phillips could have a bigger role next season and might not want to leave. And, they might not want to sell the former Leeds United midfielder.
Phillips is injury prone and tends to foul players to stop them , as opposed to Rice who rarely fouls and tends to win the ball cleanly for fast defense to offense transitions . If Rice is 120 million then Phillips is 30 million as an average midfield enforcer .