4 | Kalvin Phillips - 2022/23 Performances

[bluemoon32]

Was never good enough for us

 

[Lavinda Past]

If Fernandinho was still with us,he'd be getting a game before this fella

If Fernandinho was still with us, he'd probably be getting as many games as Rodri.

 

[meeesh]

If Fernandinho was still with us, he'd probably be getting as many games as Rodri.

Probably,but Rodri is first name on Pep's sheet even before a keeper,running him into the bastard ground,hope he has a night off tomorrow,should do anyway.

 

[Lavinda Past]

Probably,but Rodri is first name on Pep's sheet even before a keeper,running him into the bastard ground,hope he has a night off tomorrow,should do anyway.

That's what I'm getting at.

Until we get a backup who is somewhere near as good as Rodri, Fernandinho and Rodri rotation would be ideal.

 

[meeesh]

That's what I'm getting at.

Until we get a backup who is somewhere near as good as Rodri, Fernandinho and Rodri rotation would be ideal.

If only Ferna would have been 5 or 6 years younger eh

 

[decmancity]

That's what I'm getting at.

Until we get a backup who is somewhere near as good as Rodri, Fernandinho and Rodri rotation would be ideal.

Well that isn't going to happen. Not necessarily directed at you but I think Rodri is still underrated on here for some reason.

If you are close to Rodri you are starting in the CL, for your country and probably play for one of the top 6 teams in the world. That is just the long and short of it. Nobody close to Rodri is coming to City whilst he is still here.

Fernandinho was a one off, a player with vast experience and the trust of Pep.

Even then, Fernandinho was not doing what Rodri is now, he was being used to play in various positions because Pep didn't trust or have any other options.

 

[Keeper!]

I would say that's true in some positions but DM is probably the exception. It's the hardest position to play under Pep because it's not about just intercepting the ball and passing to someone else, it's critical to our whole system. He has to be there as an outlet almost 100% of the time to enable a switch of play or a pass out from the back or a triangle in wide areas. Then he also has to read the game well enough to be able to win the ball back and stop a counter or assist the defence in their positioning.

Rodri looked a car crash initially and there were numerous threads on other players to replace him. A lot of us are guilty of seeing DMs at other teams and thinking they'd be better, when all they do is intercept the ball and put a foot in. We need that alongside David Silva style tempo and control from a defensive perspective. It's a hugely challenging role to play. I believe Pep got the thumbs up from Bielsa on Phillips and believed he could give us that, and maybe in time he will. But he just doesn't look to have the confidence to be that constant outlet, the ability to control the pace of the game or - fundamentally - the fitness to cover ground and do a job.

I disagree over Rodri.

He looked class from the start, without struggled with the pace of the game/league but he showed from the start he was a quality footballer.

And again he is just getting better and better with age and experience, the greats do.

Phillips looks so slow and ponderous but his biggest crime is lack of enthusiasm on the pitch, he looks like he would rather not be on it.

 

[City_Sean]

Thought it was a pretty rank cameo in all honesty.

He genuinely looked like he couldn't be arsed. He walked and was bypassed without any effort whatsoever.

 

[meeesh]

Pep just been asked about him,answered the question by saying Rodri is so important,Pep is thinking what most are now it appears

 

[supercity88]

I disagree over Rodri.

He looked class from the start, without struggled with the pace of the game/league but he showed from the start he was a quality footballer.

And again he is just getting better and better with age and experience, the greats do.

Phillips looks so slow and ponderous but his biggest crime is lack of enthusiasm on the pitch, he looks like he would rather not be on it.

Yeah I was harsh in the car crash comments. But many were pretty uninspired and doubtful of his ability initially. It took a while for him to adapt to the pace of things and a new system where he was the sole defensive midfielder, understandably. Phillips as you say has shown no signs of being good enough in any department which is a worry. We've had many signings struggle to initially adapt but the majority have always shown the right attitude on and off the pitch. I feel as though Pep's comments today were more to give Kalvin more freedom and let him know that we're not expecting him to be Rodri because that benchmark is so high.

 

[BlueMoonAcrossThePond]

Didn't at all look the part in his last appearance - still - everyone has an off game. And he's not played regularly for ages.

So far - I'm not at all impressed - but we have a very small sample size to judge by.

 

[Lavinda Past]

Well that isn't going to happen. Not necessarily directed at you but I think Rodri is still underrated on here for some reason.

If you are close to Rodri you are starting in the CL, for your country and probably play for one of the top 6 teams in the world. That is just the long and short of it. Nobody close to Rodri is coming to City whilst he is still here.

Fernandinho was a one off, a player with vast experience and the trust of Pep.

Even then, Fernandinho was not doing what Rodri is now, he was being used to play in various positions because Pep didn't trust or have any other options.

I certainly don't 'underrate' Rodri. He's first class. I just wish we could identify and sign someone who is an effective backup fir him, rather than the likes of Phillios, who - based on his Leeds, England and City displays - simply isn't good enough.

 

[Fordyboy46]

Can see him going in the summer, I just think Pep hasn't been at all impressed with him since his arrival. Pretty hard for us fans to judge on that one awful showing at Southampton because he'd had absolutely fuck all football before that game.
I wouldn't be that arsed if he went in the summer

 

[decmancity]

I certainly don't 'underrate' Rodri. He's first class. I just wish we could identify and sign someone who is an effective backup fir him, rather than the likes of Phillios, who - based on his Leeds, England and City displays - simply isn't good enough.

The scouting brief that the club would have been given by Pep, probably leads you directly leads you to someone like Phillips though, there is no guarantee of anyone joining and immediately being a success. In fact, if anything, we have seen that 99% of players we sign don't have any real impact on the first team till at least 12mths in.

At least with the likes of Alvarez, he will get half a chance because Pep is more likely to rotate forward players.

Rodri is simply too important to us for Pep to just decide not to play him. He never dropped Busquets or Lahm, its just how he runs things.

 

[blue ranger]

Thought it was a pretty rank cameo in all honesty.

He genuinely looked like he couldn't be arsed. He walked and was bypassed without any effort whatsoever.

That’s the issue with him. We are seeing absolutely nothing from him. I think he needs a decent performance tomorrow and maybe get Bernardo’s legs near to him.

 

[Damanino]

huge question and hopefully does not happen so we dont need to find out, but what if Rodri got a 3-4 months long injury?

would Pep still refuse to put him in the first eleven?

 

[bluebreeze]

Can't believe some of the criticism of Phillips on here.

Let's look at Rodri. He's a cruiser who closes space down, closes opposition players down, tackles, take the ball from defence and attack and sets up a new play. he plays a long ball occasionally , usually to Mahrez and can chip in with the odd goal. he does not sprint round the field like a madman, he only sprints when he has to, but he is world class at what he does.

Phillips came on yesterday and some posters seem to think he should have dashed around like a blue arsed fly to show he was keen. Instead, he cruised around midfield, just as Rodri does, moving the ball around and generally trying to do the same job as Rodri, but admittedly not as well, due to lack of game time and the fact that Rodri is so good that most other DM's would pale in comparison.

We also do not know what instructions Pep gave him before he came on. if I was Pep, I would have said something like; 'keep it simples and try and get into the rhythm of the game''. Don't think Pep wanted someone tearing round the field in that position.

The other suggestion is that we sell Phillips and buy another top class DM to back up Rodri. Simple question, which top class DM would want to come and sit on the bench for most games, because Rodri will play most games?

 

[Tricky_Trev]

We should be shopping at Waitrose but we still scoot round to Farmfoods.

We picked Phillips up from Greggs, surely?

 

[toffee balls]

Even a journey of a 1000 miles begins with a single step forward.
The problem being , he hasn’t even got started.

 

[Millwallawayveteran1988]

Can see him going in the summer, I just think Pep hasn't been at all impressed with him since his arrival. Pretty hard for us fans to judge on that one awful showing at Southampton because he'd had absolutely fuck all football before that game.
I wouldn't be that arsed if he went in the summer

Yeah but he has been training for 3 months now. He still mustn’t be showing enough and came back from the World Cup out of shape which is totally unacceptable. For Pep to call him out on that is embarrassing for the lad and I think unless he has a remarkable turnaround, he is finished here before he has started.