Reports by BBC Sports has it that Manchester City have agreed a £45m deal with Leeds for England midfielder Kalvin Phillips. The club will pay £42m for the 26-year-old with potential bonuses of £3m.
The Premier League champions made Phillips a key summer transfer target, with Fernandinho leaving this summer after nine years with the club. Phillips was in the Leeds academy and has made 214 appearances for the side since his senior debut in 2015.
Phillips move – what would Man City gain and Leeds lose? City have already been busy in the transfer market with Erling Haaland completing a £51.2m transfer from Borussia Dortmund. He has signed a five-year deal until 2027 and will join the club on 1 July.
City forward Gabriel Jesus has been linked with a move to Arsenal. Phillips is expected to provide back up for Rodri at City in the single defensive midfield position favoured by manager Pep Guardiola. A key player for Leeds under former boss Marcelo Bielsa, Phillips has also shown his ability to operate higher up the pitch alongside Declan Rice for England.
England’s player of the year in 2020-21, Phillips will need to fend off competition from Jude Bellingham, Jordan Henderson, Conor Gallagher and James Ward-Prowse to earn his place in Gareth Southgate’s World Cup squad. In a separate deal, midfielder Darko Gyabi will leave City’s academy and join Leeds for £5m.
Source: BBC.
