Gareth Southgate explains why he dropped Man City midfielder Kalvin Phillips from England squad

Kalvin Phillips has been left out of the England squad for the upcoming international break, with Gareth Southgate explaining his decision to omit the midfielder

14 Mar 2024, 21:42 by Joshua Smith · Manchester Evening News

Gareth Southgate, the England boss, would be thrilled if Kalvin Phillips could secure a spot in England's Euro 2024 squad. However, he felt the need to drop the midfielder this month due to concerns about his performance levels.

Phillips, who is 28 years old, has become a crucial part of the national team since earning his first cap against Denmark in September 2020. After an impressive run to the European Championship final, Phillips was named England men's player of the year for 2020-21.

However, since moving from Leeds to Manchester City in 2022, there has been increasing pressure on his position. Despite joining West Ham on loan in January, Phillips' poor start led to his exclusion from Southgate's final squad before the Euros selection.

Southgate told BBC Radio 5 Live: "There are times when you know your best players are your best players. Other people might doubt it but you're going with them because you know that you can get that level of performance from them.

"At the moment, I couldn't be confident on the performances Kalvin's had in the last few weeks that he could go onto the field and do the job we know that he's capable of."

"So, there's absolutely no reason why he can't find that form. Nothing would give us more pleasure than having a Kalvin that's back in the rhythm of playing and back to full confidence.

"We will be a better team, squad, whatever that might be, if that's the case, so we're hoping he can find that.

"Maybe a moment like this where you think, well, that's perhaps the lowest it can get for him in terms of the last few months, now he can just go for it and be himself."

Southgate last year warned that Phillips' place was in jeopardy if he continued to be a peripheral figure at City but believes the "outstanding player" has the attributes to bounce back.

"I think he knows exactly what we think of him," Southgate said at the Wembley press conference. "I think we've shown that support.

"A good version of him is an important player for us and that's why we've supported him as we have. We don't have many players of that profile.

"Unfortunately, his form just hasn't been good enough. I've spoken to him about that, he understands."

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