Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is now reportedly ready to ship out one of his stars in January.
After making a £42 million (R977 million) move to the Etihad from Leeds United in July 2022, midfielder Kalvin Phillips is seemingly set to be available for a loan move away in January 2024, according to iNews.
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With an injury-riddled start to life in Manchester, the 27-year-old has made just 26 appearances for the Citizens since joining, with only four of them being starts.
And after Guardiola chose to start Rico Lewis, who is more recognised as a right-back, in defensive midfield ahead of Phillips in their clash against Arsenal over the weekend, the England international's departure in the next window has become increasingly likely, albeit in a temporary capacity.
However, despite his lack of playing time at City, Phillips is still considered to be Premier League-proven, having made 49 appearances for Leeds in the competition.
As a result, the defensive midfielder has already attracted the attention of Newcastle United and Everton, with the Magpies reported to have also shown an interest in signing the out-of-favour star in the previous window.
That interest has now seemingly been reignited, especially as Eddie Howe is believed to be a big admirer of Phillips and is looking to bring in competition for the midfielders he already has at his disposal.
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Meanwhile, Everton face the likelihood of losing two midfielders – Senegalese Idrissa Gana Gueye and Abdoulaye Doucoure of Mali – to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations set to kick off in mid-January, and are thus also in the market for midfield reinforcements of their own, with Phillips in their sights too.
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