Seven months after joining the club, Kalvin Phillips finally made his full debut for Manchester City in their Carabao Cup quarter-final clash against Southampton.
The 27-year-old midfielder, who penned a six-year contract with the Citizens in July after leaving boyhood club Leeds, came off the bench against Chelsea on two separate occasions last week.
But after a far-from-ideal month that included Pep Guardiola's criticism over his fitness, Phillips was handed a start on Wednesday night at St Mary's.
It was, however, a difficult outing for the England international, who was eventually brought off for fellow-midfielder Rodri with an hour played.
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Fans on social media were quick to discuss Phillips' lacklustre performance. One said: "Kalvin Phillips wont be at City for much longer. He’s been bang average tonight."
Another commented: "Worst thing Kalvin Phillips did was join Man City. Will never be a regular and push on after his excellent spell at Leeds. Needed the right club for his continued development and for England."
A third wrote: "Just a kind reminder to everyone that even though he wasn't in the best of form Southgate still decided to pick a half dead Kalvin Phillips in England's World Cup squad and not JWP."
A fourth said: "I'm not saying it just because he had a poor game, but Kalvin Phillips isn't anything like a Man City player."
Earlier this week, Guardiola urged Phillips to 'fight' Rodri for a starting place in the City side.
“Kalvin has to fight with Rodri,” the Spaniard said. “For the benefit of all of us, Rodri cannot sleep. He has to have the feeling that someone is close to him to do it."
He added: "We need Kalvin - I have said that from day one. When he didn’t train after the World Cup it’s because I said I don’t want him to get injured so it’s better to wait a few days and come back step by step"
Away from Phillips' performance and it was a poor evening for reigning Premier League champions City.
Nathan Jones' side, who came into Wednesday's cup tie as huge underdogs, took a surprise lead through Sekou Mara with 23 minutes on the clock.
And five minutes later, the capacity crowd inside St Mary's erupted when Djenepo gave the home side a two-goal cushion.
The outstanding effort – his first goal since March 2021 – was described as "outrageous" by the Sky Sports commentator. You can check out that wonderful chip below.
Thoughts on Phillips' performance against Southampton on Wednesday? Was it the right decision to join City?
Let us know in the comments.
Topics: Kalvin Phillips, Manchester City, Southampton, Carabao Cup
Jack Kenmare