Euro giants accelerate shock swoop for Man City player, in move that’ll alert Fulham
Man City trio Kalvin Phillips, Phil Foden and Erling Haaland
German heavyweights Bayern have taken another step towards signing Kalvin Phillips, as they have reportedly made contact with Manchester City for him.
Phillips left boyhood club Leeds United in July 2022 by signing for City in a deal worth £45million. The defensive midfielder made the move to win major silverware and also challenge himself at the highest level.
However, it was always going to be tough for Phillips to get into the City starting eleven on a regular basis due to Pep Guardiola already being able to use world-class star Rodri in his position.
And Phillips has struggled to make an impact for City due to this, as he has managed just 760 minutes since moving to the Etihad. That works out at just eight and a half full matches.
While the Englishman will have expected it to be hard to get into the City team, he will not have anticipated such an underwhelming spell. And he has also been accused of not being fit enough by Guardiola in the past.
Unsurprisingly, Phillips is already being tipped to depart City so he can rejuvenate his career elsewhere. West Ham are long-term admirers of him, while Tottenham, Newcastle and Everton are understood to be monitoring the situation.
READ MORE – Exclusive: Man City, West Ham expected to lead race for Chelsea star in January
Last week, there was a shock twist as it emerged that Bayern are interested in Phillips. Their manager, Thomas Tuchel has been searching for a new No 6 ever since moving to the Allianz Arena, and Bayern resultantly pursued Joao Palhinha in the summer. But they could not get that deal over the line, which is why Phillips has popped up on their shortlist.
According to the latest from 90Min, Bayern have begun the process of trying to snare Phillips by initiating contact with City. They want to know whether he will be available in January and if so, how much City will demand for a permanent transfer. Alternatively, the 27-year-old could head to Bavaria on a six-month loan deal.
Bayern eyeing two Prem midfielders
It must be noted that Bayern have not forgotten about Palhinha, as he remains their prime target to elevate the midfield to the next level. But if Fulham manage to keep hold of the Portuguese, then Bayern will move for Phillips instead.
Intriguingly, Phillips could end up swapping clubs with Joshua Kimmich. On Sunday, TEAMtalk exclusively revealed that City are confident Kimmich will want to sign for them if he opts to leave Bayern for a new challenge at the end of the campaign.
