Manchester City have agreed a deal with Leeds United for the signing of England international Kalvin Phillips. The 26-year-old is expected to join the Blues next season to replace the outgoing Fernandinho.
The news broke from the ever-reliable David Ornstein of The Athletic in an exclusive report, which states that City have agreed a deal which totals to £45 million; £42 million upfront with a potential £3 million in add-ons.
After the news of veteran midfielder Fernandinho departing, City had put Phillips top of their transfer targets to replace the Brazilian, and following the signing of Erling Haaland, the club intensified their interest in the Leeds midfielder.
Phillips, who is currently on holiday, was set to report back to Leeds for pre-season on July 4th, but Ornstein reports that the transfer may be finalised as early as next week due to the swift progress in negotiations.
The Leeds academy graduate, who had 2 years left on his current deal, endured a lengthy injury which ruled him out for quite a while last season but has always shown incredible amounts of quality whenever he's played, especially under a favourite of Pep Guardiola, Marcelo Bielsa.
In addition to this, his performances during Euro 2020 showed that he was definitely ready for the step up to a Champions League level side and what better than to play under Guardiola, renowned for his improvement of midfielders.
With the World Cup not far away, Phillips was said to be very keen on the move to the Etihad due to the level and quality of games he would feature in. This would also help secure his place in the England line-up for Qatar.
Mike Keegan of the Daily Mail has also reported on the Phillips deal, but adds that Leeds received a call from French giants Paris Saint-Germain last week. Despite this, and interest from other Premier League sides, Phillips was reportedly only looking to leave his boyhood club, for which he made 233 appearances, if City were involved.
Leeds have already brought in a new midfielder, Marc Roca from Bayern Munich – but Ornstein understands that Jesse Marsch is looking to bring in another midfielder to replace Phillips with Tyler Adams of RB Leipzig being top of the list.
At the same time, Ornstein reports that City youngster Darko Gyabi may be drawing near to a move to Elland Road in a £5 million deal. However, it is understood that this is a deal being discussed separately from that of Phillips.
Written by: @MCFCNavii
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