Much has been made of Leeds United‘s dramatic resurgence under Marcelo Bielsa and no player has symbolised their transformation more than Kalvin Phillips.
The local lad from Wortley, who comes from a close-knit family of Leeds supporters, dreamt of reaching the Premier League with his home-town club and one day playing for England.
The tough-tackling midfielder, 24, achieved the first goal last month when Bielsa guided Leeds back to the top flight after 16 years in the wilderness. Uncapped at any level, Phillips now looks set to realise the second after being included in Gareth Southgate’s squad for next month’s Nations League games against Iceland and Denmark.
Whether Phillips can enjoy the kind of influence he does for Leeds at Premier League and international level remains to be seen.
But that he has impressed Southgate enough to earn inclusion says everything about his improvement under Bielsa.
When Bielsa held talks about becoming Leeds manager in the summer of 2018, he met chief executive Angus Kinnear and director of football Victor Orta in a Buenos Aires hotel. They talked about football and the potential of a sleeping giant for 12 hours. Bielsa, noted for his obsessive attention to detail, had watched all 51 Leeds games from the previous season.
Bielsa did not demand a host of new signings, rather, as Kinnear recalled: “Marcelo was actually much more focused on what he could get out of the existing squad and players he felt would step up.
“Players that had potentially been written off by the fanbase, like Liam Cooper and Kalvin Phillips, were specific ones who Marcelo said ‘I will make them the best in the league’.”
Two years on and Cooper has captained Leeds to promotion and Phillips has established himself as the heartbeat of the side.
Phillips had shown glimpses of his potential since his debut under Neil Redfearn in April 2015 but had never established himself. Steve Evans, one of seven managers who Phillips has played under at Leeds, often overlooked him.
Phillips said earlier this year: “He would say I was starting a game and then we’d walk into the changing room before a game and I wouldn’t even be on the bench. It wasn’t a nice time for me.”
The season before Bielsa arrived, Phillips was deployed further forward, scoring seven goals, but the former Argentina and Chile coach sensed his potential as a holding midfielder.
He has expertly moulded Phillips into an uncompromising player who protects his defence, halts opposition attacks and distributes the ball effectively with passes long and short.
Phillips lost weight and went on to thrive under Bielsa’s strict regime, enjoying an outstanding campaign as Leeds went close to promotion before losing to Derby in the play-offs.
His performances attracted interest from the Premier League and, with Leeds under pressure to satisfy financial fair play rules, Phillips could have easily joined Aston Villa last summer. Instead, he chose to stay at Leeds and signed a five-year deal.
The reward for his loyalty is a place in the Premier League with his boyhood club and a potential international career too.
Phillips has never represented England at any level but his former boss Redfearn said: “I don’t think there are many players with Kalvin’s ability to play the holding role to such good effect. He is the perfect build for that position, powerful but with a fantastic range of passing.
“Kalvin has taken his game to another level under Bielsa.
“He deserves his chance for England and is certainly ready to play in the Premier League.”
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