The midfielder has started just two games for the side and will be anxious to vindicate his decision to stay at the club
Kalvin Phillips strode out of the Etihad on Saturday evening, a smile on his face and hopeful that he is finally on the verge of starting his Manchester City career in earnest.
Whether the England midfielder still has that same spring in his step when Rodri returns from his upcoming three-match suspension following his red card on Saturday will say much about whether Phillips was right to reject the opportunity to leave Pep Guardiola’s team this summer.
Since quitting Leeds for £42 million in the summer of 2022, Phillips has started precisely two Premier League games for Guardiola, and played a total of 347 minutes of league football.
Gareth Southgate, watching City for the second time in four days in the 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest, has handed the 27-year-old four starts and a total of 401 minutes of international football in the same span – an anomaly that raises questions every time the national manager names Phillips in an England squad, which is to say, every time he names a squad.