Kalvin Phillips produced another impressive performance in the centre of England's midfield during last night's 4-0 victory away to Hungary.
The victory was marred with more racist behaviour from the Bulgarian supporters as the Three Lions ran riot in the second half thanks to goals from Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Harry Maguire and Declan Rice.
But it was the 25-year-old Leeds man who picked up where he left off after an impressive Euro 2020 tournament and showed once more why he was voted as England's men's Player of the Year.
'The Yorkshire Pirlo' had a massive hand in helping England double their lead with a perfectly weighted interception turned pass to Mason Mount and was combative in his tackling and interceptions, keeping the ball moving at every opportunity.
In the 16 caps that Phillips has won for England, the team have gone on to keep 11 clean sheets. He and Declan Rice have provided a lot of protection for the defence which has only been unlocked four times whilst he has been on the field, with only one coming from open play.
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In Budapest, Phillips stood up to the crowd and the opposition, in the ultimate display of strength and willingness to win. He recored a 91% pass completion rate winning six of his seven tackles. His performance was summed up on the hour mark, sprinting in to win the ball inside the Hungarian half and leaving Roland Sallai in a heap.
Phillips will no doubt be one of the players who is set to be given a breather in the next game against Andorra. A victory at Wembley will set a mouthwatering game against Poland in the final game of this International break. The tight-knit group know that two victories will send the team to another major tournament, in Qatar, for the 2022 World Cup which would wrap up the perfect week for Gareth Southgate, who celebrates his birthday today.
Topics: Kalvin Phillips, Leeds United, England, Declan Rice, Harry Kane, Mason Mount, Gareth Southgate
