Forum | Phillips on the bbc gossip page by Keno (2025)

[Post edited 18 Mar 7:23]

I think it’d be a good move for him. He’s needs to get out of City permanently, as they kill careers of players like him who drop out of their first team squad.

Assuming Leeds go up, I cannot see them taking him. Obviously he was a terrific footballer but doesn’t look Premier League level now. You can see he knows what to do and gives his all, but is slightly off it, whether it’s fitness, spending minutes getting a boot back or more importantly a fraction short in tackling and control sometimes.

Let’s face it, a fraction short in the Premier League you are toast and so is your team if you are the main man in midfield.

Can certainly see him bringing a bit of premier league know how to Leeds and being a squad player for them.

Lots are talking like Leeds are a shoe in to go up, lets not all forget their end of season wobbles!

Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly.

It's worth pointing out Football Insider were the ones claiming we were sending him back to Man City in January.

Selfishly I hope the current top 3 do, they’re the best sides by some distance and I’d back us to outpace the rest of the championship next season if they’re not in it. I’m hoping Southampton and / or Leicester become a bit of a circus too.

He's shown in his last two loan spells that he's a long way off the player he was and if we are being totally fair, he's not looked any better than what we already had in Mass/ Morsy/ Taylor.

All the best to him but surely a move abroad beckons.

think they also mentioned it last week as well, same story, different day.

They are the cusp of their annual fcuk up as we speak …..squeaky bum time again.

At the right price, he would be a fantastic squad player for them.

Our problem is that we need him as a regular first team starter.

We have put in the hard graft for them, getting him back out on the pitch.

Yep, jokes aside we could do with them out of it next season, would make life a lot easier.

Yep. Absolute best-case scenario is Leeds, Blades and Burnley to go up.

Leaves us and Saints to probably compete with.... Sunderland, Coventry, West Brom, Birmingham?

I don't really see any of the other teams being capable of outdoing us over 46 games. Let's also bear in mind we romped to a 4-1 win over Cov a couple of months ago.

That's why we have to remain upbeat by our status as a club now. We're hopefully going into our yo-yo era. If we can bounce back, I know KMac will have learnt a great deal about this season.

As a matter of interest, why do you think Leeds have a far better starting point re PL competitiveness? Do you mean facilities, infrastructure, youth system? Team wise they have been out of it for two seasons and look ordinary and poorer, player wise, than last year.

You don't see any other teams being able to outdo us in the Championship?

On what basis?

We're also coming down without Cajuste/Phillips, Delap will be gone and we'll lose a couple of others. Cajuste has been our best player. We need to see what we do in the summer before making assumptions we're going to be too strong for that league. Right now it could be just 1 of the the three relegated sides from last season who will go up this season, I expect it will be two, but it's a tough league and we cannot expect an easy ride just because we spent a season in the Premier League, that will be irrelevant. There are a ton of big clubs in the Championship who will also be gunning for promotion.

Remember we managed to nick automatic promotion off of Leeds and Southampton last season and next to no one will have seen that coming. Leeds had also spent a bucket load on their squad, much like we have.

We will have a squad packed with elite-level Championship players. Probably with a few more to be added in the summer.

Coupled with an elite-level Championship manager (if McKenna stays).

There's not a 'ton' of big clubs that'll be gunning for promotion. There's many modest-sized clubs with minimal FFP headroom to compete with the likes of us this coming summer, who'll hope to cling onto the coat tails of the top six.

Is that enough of a basis for you?

Phillips has done little for us and I honestly don’t see what others do in Cajuste. It’s all opinions. Our best player by a mile btw has been Delap. Cajuste looks good running with the ball, has terrific control and looks classy. But delivery? Has he really hurt teams or controlled the middle of the park? Is his fitness any better than suspect? For me it’s a no. When we are up against it he goes missing too. He’s not the only one. Our ageing arthritic midfield has been weak throughout.

Yes we will lose Delap. Luongo (an important player for us last season) will also be gone plus one or two others. But we have a lot more better players than the team that was promoted last season plus potentially Humphreys, Ogbene, Burns, Chaplin coming back. Hirst too. In many ways he’s a better team player than Delap at the moment while the latter is learning the game.

We have good defensive options even if we lose a player or two, too many keepers and plenty of wide players. It’s a question of whether a proper ‘team’ can be gelled together.

The standard in the Championship is like watching old men’s walking football compared to the PL. it’s a mile off. Of course it won’t be easy. Nobody thinks it will be. The Championship isn’t like that. But there is no reason whatsoever why we shouldn’t be competitive. Yes there are a ‘lot of big clubs’ in the Championship and Birmingham will challenge too. But there’s an awful lot of rubbish teams, big clubs or not.

We didn’t nick second spot off anyone. We finished second fair and square by winning more points pure and simple. We were simply better than them.

Why the constant negativity?

[Post edited 18 Mar 14:53]

With 2 years left on his City contract, Phillips is unsaleable so unless he wants to rot in the City reserves, a loan is the only option. I don;t think he's done enough at Town for an established PL team to want him, especially after his poor loan spell at West Ham so a season long loan at Leeds looks the likeliest option, assuming they do go up.

As a roll of the dice as a squad player you could see it happening

I wouldn't be surprised if they wanted Leif Davis back either

They've arguably got the best, if not one of the best LB's in the Championship?

You'd have two players who have shown a similar level and you'd be paying 20+ million for the privilege.

I can think of a few landing spots for Leif (Everton, West Ham, Burnley if they went up) but Leeds wouldn't make much sense for either party IMO.