Kalvin Phillips | On loan at West Ham

To be fair the ' have absolute faith in every player' guys have been getting all the wins recently, and all the doomers have been getting proved wrong constantly. About time the pessimists got a notch, and think phillips is sorting them out.
 
I’m hoping I’m really wide of the mark but Kalvin reminds me very much of the mistake we made with Jack Rodwell. Looks way out of his depth at the moment. My biggest concern is his apparent lack of pace. If he had El Mago’s footballing brain it wouldn’t be as much of an issue but at the moment he’s not showing that.
I really want the lad to succeed but I’m not sure Pep will be as forgiving if there isn’t marked improvement, and fast.
 
My biggest issue with Phillips is that it he's meant to be our backup to Rodri, but feels like he's a long way off that to the point I can see there being 2/3 other players starting ahead of him when we play a game of any importance. So what's the point in Phillips?

Rodri played 56 games last season - 4,500 minutes (excluding internationals). After that much football, it will be a miracle if he has the same level of fitness this season. With an already light midfield, we're playing with fire if Pep doesn't think Phillips is up to the task, but keep him around because he doesn't want to leave.

Feels like we're stuck in a situation where the club would sell him tomorrow if he was willing to go, but he's doesn't want to leave, and we're being too nice about it. Some hard home truths need to be spoken between Phillips / Pep / the club.

Another player like Kovacic - someone that can play as either a 6 or an 8 - would be far more useful to us when our squad options already seem light.
 
For context, I really wanted him here. I thought he would give us a bit of bite which, at the time, we sometimes lacked imo. If the bar for backup DM is to be as good as Rodri, then that’s a tall order. If Pep really doesn’t fancy him though then let’s move him on. Football careers are short and he shouldn’t be wasting his time when he would be a guaranteed starter for most PL teams.
 
He is living in cuckoo land if he thinks that his performances in pre season is progress. We might have to admit we got this one wrong. If and it looks like a huge if at present Phillips can turn this around I would be gobsmacked.

I genuinely thought he would be a baller in our midfield with Rodri. Not sure what is going on.

Ake tho needed time aswell. How much time do we realistically give him? Another 1/2 seasons?
 
Give Phillips until January and if he isn't in Pep's plans by then cut him loose (although replacing him in that window is very difficult)
 
AshtonBlueMooner said:
I’m hoping I’m really wide of the mark but Kalvin reminds me very much of the mistake we made with Jack Rodwell. Looks way out of his depth at the moment. My biggest concern is his apparent lack of pace. If he had El Mago’s footballing brain it wouldn’t be as much of an issue but at the moment he’s not showing that.
I really want the lad to succeed but I’m not sure Pep will be as forgiving if there isn’t marked improvement, and fast.
Click to expand...
I disagree about Rodwell. Thought he was a very good player and if he stayed injury free would’ve been a constant starter for club and country but injuries and his mentality towards getting injured ultimately paid the price. He could play in a number of positions too
 
fuskarn said:
at least with grealish, he still got a lot of minutes in his first & second season and showed massive improvement. phillips will just warm the bench unless we are 3-0 up against relegation teams. its over
Click to expand...
And look what happened when he did come on against a relegation team 3-0 up vs Leicester...
 
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