'Difficult time for him' - Coach explains why Kalvin Phillips' loan at West Ham went so badly as midfielder returns to Man City fold

In January, Phillips was loaned to West Ham with hopes of revitalising his career after facing challenges at City. The move was intended to provide him with more game time and a chance to showcase his skills, but things didn't go as planned.

During his tenure at the London Stadium, Phillips managed to start only three of the ten matches he appeared in. His stint was marred by a red card in his fourth game, and his overall performance led to his exclusion from England's Euro 2024 squad. Once regarded as one of England's top defensive midfielders during his successful period at Leeds United, Phillips now finds himself at a career crossroads.

Speaking on the talkSPORT Breakfast show, former West Ham coach Nolan explained: "We put him in right away because we thought we should put him in and just let him play and get him going, but it didn’t work out. To be fair to him, he’s such a lovely lad. You want him to do well so were there and we were still going and giving him the support he needed. You had the boss speaking, just saying he’s going to need support over the next couple of months and we gave him that.

“I think he’s seeing it and I think what he sort of realised in the early months was that he missed a lot of football and it was difficult to get back to that level so I quickly. It’s great to see that he had a run-out last night and you know, hopefully, on the back of a good pre-season he’ll get a nice move away because that’s what’s being talked about, but he needs the right support and the right club.”

Phillips might find a new opportunity at Everton as the Toffees are looking to strengthen their midfield before the new season. Nolan believes this could be beneficial for Phillips, stating, "Sean Dyche could offer the support Phillips needs. He’s got a really good backroom team and how they use the fitness coaches so being around them will help him. He’ll also be at home, which was a major thing with him coming down to London.

“He’d just had a baby, but everybody forgets about all of those things when we’re moving here, there and everywhere and our wives and kids are going off to another place while we get them set or they’re looking at houses. So hopefully he gets the opportunity to go to a club where he’s fit, he’s ready and on level with the other players. I think he has (got a fire in his belly) and it’s not for anyone else, but it’s sort like ‘I’ll show you’ and it’s for himself more than anything. He’s definitely got the ability and I truly hope that he gets back to where he was a couple of years ago and I’ve got no doubt that when he does, England will come knocking again.”

Phillips recently made his first appearance for City since his return from West Ham in a friendly against Celtic, but was far from impressive. He lacked control in midfield which left acres of space for the Scottish team to exploit. However, the English midfielder might get a few more chances to impress Guardiola in the pre-season trip as City have travelled with a depleted squad to the United States with several key stars missing. Hence, it would not be surprising if he lines up against AC Milan on Saturday evening at Yankees Stadium.