FC Barcelona ‘Missed Their Shot’ to Sign Kalvin Phillips Due to Financial Crunch: Reports

Kalvin Phillips has had a bumpy ride in Manchester City. Despite Phillips joining City in July 2022, Pep Guardiola started him only on six occasions. City. Therefore, Philips has joined West Ham United on a temporary loan until the current season concludes. Despite Phillips not being a viable option for Guardiola, FC Barcelona saw great potential in the Englishman to enhance their midfield. Yet, financial issues kept Barca from immediately securing the midfielder’s services. Once the issues got resolved, Blaugrana lost Phillips to West Ham United by a day! 

West Ham and Manchester City completed Kalvin Phillips’ loan move on January 26. Barcelona had Phillips on their radar before that. However, they could not pursue him because of financial fair play regulations. At this juncture, Barcelona’s defender Alejandro Balde got injured on January 24. The club expected Balde to miss the rest of the season but was still awaiting the medical team’s response. If the medical team confirmed that Balde could miss the remainder of the season, the Spanish soccer club could have used 80% of the defender’s wages to pay a new player. As per Marca, Balde’s injury update came on January 27, forcing them to ‘miss their shot’ at signing Phillips before West Ham’s January 26 move. Talk about race against time!

After they fail to land Kalvin Phillips, Barcelona will probably sign Girona FC midfielder Aleix García. Besides Barcelona, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Juventus, Fulham, and Crystal Palace also showed interest in the 29-year-old midfielder. But David Moyes’ side made the move in time and poached Phillips. He played for West Ham in two matches since his loan move. But to make his deal permanent with the London club, Phillips has yet to prove himself.

Kalvin Phillips looks to dust the cobwebs during his time at Manchester City 

Phillips remained on Manchester City’s bench for over two years. He started in the club’s draw against Bournemouth. But David Moyes benched him midway through the game. Next, Phillips came off the bench in the 70th minute while West Ham played a losing game against Manchester United at Old Trafford. Having played just 20 minutes, Phillips could not save his latest club from taking a 3-0 beating from United.

Roy Keane, the Manchester United legend and Sky Sports analyst expressed his concern about Phillips being benched even after leaving Manchester City. However, if the English midfielder plays more than two minutes in West Ham’s next match, he will have more Premier League game time in his credit under West Ham than Manchester City.

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Besides, his peers at the London-based club are not equal to his City counterparts. Hence, Phillips can emerge as a vital force for West Ham in the remainder of the season. If he can unlock his potential, Moyes could have a player in his hands by permanently signing him from his disappointing Manchester City days.

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