Gary Neville gets it wrong on Kalvin Phillips as Fabrizio Romano shares West Ham United transfer update
West Ham United manager David Moyes was tasked with completely transforming his midfield in the summer transfer window.
That was the situation at the London Stadium simply because of Declan Rice, with the former captain leaving a huge hole in the middle of the pitch upon his move to Arsenal.
But the East London club filled that gap expertly, bringing in James Ward-Prowse and Edson Alvarez from Southampton and Ajax respectively.
Both have hit the ground running immediately, with their defensive midfield roles allowing Tomas Soucek to often play in a more attacking role.
That is the trio that Moyes has relied heavily upon this season, with the Hammers manager reluctant to rotate his starting XI, even with the club competing on various fronts.
But that midfield looks set to be rocked, with Kalvin Phillips arriving at the London Stadium imminently. As per Fabrizio Romano (25 January), the England international is set to join the club on loan from Manchester City, with a buy option included in the deal.
And it is a transfer that Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville has been waxing lyrical about, with the former Manchester United defender believing both West Ham and Phillips are getting a good deal.
“I think it’s a good fit,” Neville said on The Gary Neville Podcast (23 January). “I can see why David Moyes would want Kalvin Phillips – that reliability in midfield. They lost Declan Rice last summer so it’ll improve West Ham and it’s a good move for West Ham.
“It’s a good move for Kalvin Phillips because he needs to be guaranteed to play. Gareth Southgate likes him and trusts him, and he wants him playing so he can get him back in the team. It’s not a position England are blessed with lots of options.”
While Neville is right that England do not exactly have several options in defensive midfield, he has got it wrong in terms of Phillips being guaranteed to play at West Ham.
The Hammers are already strong in this area, with Phillips highly unlikely to start ahead of either Ward-Prowse or Alvarez in defensive midfield.
Perhaps the manager has an idea of starting Phillips ahead of Soucek, thus seeing Ward-Prowse be pushed forward, but that would be very harsh on the Czech Republic international.
Moreover, given what happened to Phillips under Pep Guardiola, the midfielder will be extremely low on confidence. It is understandable given his lack of game time, but the 28-year-old didn’t exactly impress when given the chance by the Manchester City manager.
The only saving grace for Phillips at the London Stadium will be the fact that the Hammers are trying to successfully compete in the Premier League and the Europa League, with the midfielder surely bound to land some playing time as Moyes looks to chop and change his starting XI to keep everyone fresh.
In other West Ham news, a former Premier League referee has shared a “conundrum” verdict after a double Hammers controversy in the recent clash with Sheffield United.
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