“Different ways to go about it” – Kalvin Phillips hits back at Pep Guardiola criticism

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Published on 2024-02-12 15:00:00

West Ham’s loanee Kalvin Phillips has responded to comments made by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola regarding his weight.

The 28-year-old completed a transfer to the London Stadium for the remainder of the current campaign during the January transfer window in a bid to improve his chances of being selected for the European Championships in Germany under Gareth Southgate.

Having made just six starts in 18 months for Manchester City despite winning five trophies, including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, Emirates FA Cup, and FIFA Club World Cup, Phillips’ move to West Ham was motivated by a desire to revive his international career.

The midfielder made a high-profile move to Manchester City from Elland Road in July 2022 for a transfer fee of £42 million but failed to make an impact within the first-team squad, being an unused substitute on 45 occasions.

He then made four starts last season, and his Premier League debut for City was against Brentford on the final day of the 2022/23 campaign.

Already making three appearances for West Ham, Phillips debuted against Bournemouth and also featured in Sunday’s humiliating 6-0 loss to Arsenal at the London Stadium.

Despite transfer interest from several Premier League clubs during the January transfer window, he chose to make the move to East London.

Phillips’ motivation to move to West Ham was influenced by his England ambitions after his international career stalled at Manchester City.

The midfielder was selected for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022 despite limited minutes but responded to comments by Pep Guardiola after his return from the tournament, regarding the manager’s public statement that Phillips was ‘overweight.’

In an interview with The Sun newspaper, Phillips said, “After the World Cup was probably the toughest, when Pep [Guardiola] came out and said I was overweight. He was right to do so but there are different ways to go about it.”

Phillips admitted that it took a big knock on his confidence and how he felt at City, as well as affecting his family, especially his mother.

He said: “It took a big knock on my confidence and how I felt at City. My family were not happy about it, either. Especially Mum.”

Phillips addressed the issue of a misunderstanding with Guardiola, stating that the manager was frustrated with him coming back 1.5kg over his target weight.

He also explained that there was a miscommunication about his return and that his family was not happy about it either.

Despite being unable to feature when West Ham faces Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in May, Phillips will be available for the Hammers’ UEFA Europa League fixtures.

Read Original article on City Xtra