Football Daily | Kalvin Phillips to Ipswich makes sense: no club is more out of the way

In The Same Boat: Like Captain Phillips

The career of a player who has won the Premier League, Champions League, and FA Cup might seem like an easy one. But for Kalvin Phillips, it has been anything but. Despite also playing in a European Championship final and earning 31 caps for England, Phillips has found himself stuck in a frustrating situation at Manchester City. He is barely getting any playing time and it seems like a loan deal may be the only way for him to get back on the field. Despite this, his high salary at the Etihad Stadium makes it hard for other clubs to sign him permanently.

Phillips attempted a temporary change in January, bringing his well-known name and wealth to London. However, his experience with West Ham was not very successful as he did not get much playing time due to errors from his time at City. He played in eight Premier League games but only started in three. As he came back to Manchester for pre-season, he was unsure of where he would end up for his upcoming loan.

Guardiola brought Phillips on the tour and tried him out as a centre-back because of limited options and a desire to experiment. However, it was unlikely that he would make it into the starting lineup by mid-August. During the Community Shield win over Manchester United, Phillips patiently sat on the bench while teenager Nico O’Reilly played ahead of him. Guardiola mentioned before the match that Phillips had some difficulty when playing in the middle surrounded by other players, but acknowledged his contributions in previous games on the tour. This was not a strong endorsement for Phillips as a central midfielder.

It seems like a move to Ipswich is inevitable now, especially after Ed Sheeran's inspiring acoustic performance at England's Euros camp. Despite being far from any Premier League club, Ipswich is a logical choice for Phillips to start fresh. With his talent and potential, Kieran McKenna believes he can help him reach new heights, just like when he made a £45m move from Leeds to City. While some may think Phillips wasted two years at City, his wealth and collection of medals suggest otherwise. Now, he can look forward to playing football with Ipswich without any regrets.

Today's Quote

"Wow, these Spanish folks are dull... I never expected to be asked about Kylian again. I have nothing to keep secret. I've always been a huge fan of Kylian Mbappé and I wish him the best - and hope Madrid loses against us," Luis Enrique discussed in his press conference ahead of PSG's Ligue 1 match against Le Havre.

Geoff found Gareth Southgate's England call-up photo in the Memory Lane section on Wednesday to be interesting. Even though it was the wrong flag, Geoff was curious as to why Gareth was wearing Chris Kirkland's England youth team goalkeeping jersey. He did appreciate the tribute styling to Lev Yashin, though.

Seeing Jimmy Greaves and Mike England drinking milk from glass bottles in 1967 brought back memories of my childhood in 1947. I remember waking up from my nap at kindergarten, joining my classmates in the hall to grab a cold glass bottle of milk with a cardboard top and a straw. The milk always seemed creamier in my memories. By 1982, I had immigrated to Australia and asked a milkman if I could get Gold Top milk here. He sadly explained that the locals wouldn't understand what I meant, as the milk in Australia was thinner due to the heat. Years later, when Pura Milk took over the Sheffield Shield, I would ask my neighbors which was better - The Pura Milk Cup or The Sheffield Shield - referring to the milk quality. This often led to confusion and some Australian slang directed my way. Even at 82 years old, I still long for the days when my grandmother would get milk from the Co-op, and I can still hear Bruce Ellis reminding us not to forget the "divvy."

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