Eddie Howe admission reminds Kalvin Phillips that Man City exit is not that simple

It looks like Kalvin Phillips will leave Manchester City in January, a move that would be the least shocking of the window.

The midfielder has barely played 90 minutes in the Premier League this season and he must be fearing for his place in England's Euro 2024 squad in spite of Gareth Southgate’s persistent loyalty. Pep Guardiola has left the door open for a winter exit after admitting to not being able to get the best out of him.

Despite his limited game time, no one is questioning the quality of Phillips and he seemingly has a number of potential takers next month. Juventus have sprung up as candidates amid their midfield woes.

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Paul Pogba and Nicolo Fagioli are both suspended due to respective bans so reinforcement for the Italians is needed, and their supposed interest in Phillips underscores how he is still viewed despite his fringe City status.

The transfer more likely to happen is the switch to Newcastle. It would mean less upheaval of home life but perhaps less game time opportunity. Sandro Tonali is also serving a ban but Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton, Lewis Miley and Sean Longstaff will all want minutes.

It’s perhaps why Eddie Howe remained coy when asked about his potential interest in Phillips on Friday. “I would never talk about any individual player,” he declared.

“We are assessing our squad probably on a daily basis to see where we stand injury-wise and to see where the gaps are in our squad and see what January can bring us, but I probably wouldn't expect any developments, any early news on that. It's a long month so we will wait and see.”

It seems inevitable that some sort of