West Ham in talks with Manchester City over Kalvin Phillips loan deal
West Ham United are in talks with Manchester City over a loan deal for Kalvin Phillips and hope to win the chase for the England midfielder this week.
A deal has still to be agreed but West Ham are understood to have manoeuvred themselves into a strong position to sign the in-demand 28-year-old.
Phillips has attracted widespread interest from Premier League and leading European clubs as he seeks regular playing time during the second half of the season.
The West Ham manager, David Moyes, has been a long-term admirer of Phillips and has been pushing hard for his signature, with the player understood to be open to a move to the east London club.
Newcastle, Crystal Palace and Fulham are among the other Premier League sides to have shown serious interest in Phillips while Juventus have led the running on the continent ahead of the likes of Atletico Madrid.
City are thought to have been asking for a loan fee around the £5-6 million mark for Phillips which, coupled with the player’s wages of £140,000-a-week plus, represents a considerable financial commitment.
Phillips has made just two Premier League starts since his £42 million move from Leeds 18 months ago and wants regular football.
He has remained firmly in the England picture under Gareth Southgate but knows playing week in, week out will likely boost his international prospects ahead of the European Championship in Germany this summer.
Pep Guardiola, the City manager, has praised Phillips’ attitude and approach despite his lack of games.
Fourteen of his 16 appearances for City in the Premier League have come from the substitutes’ bench and he has made just six starts in total for the club in all competitions.
City had been open to loaning Phillips last summer but a deal failed to materialise, not least because the midfielder was determined to try to force his way into Guardiola’s plans given that he was not the first player to find the going tough in his debut season with the champions.
Meanwhile, City have been boosted by Erling Haaland completing a full training session on Monday in Abu Dhabi, where the club are on a winter training camp.
The Norway striker has missed City’s last nine matches with a foot injury and has not played since the 1-0 defeat by Aston Villa early last month, but the news he is back in full training is a huge fillip for Guardiola. Defender John Stones as also returned to training after an ankle injury.
