Kalvin Phillips to West Ham United may not go through despite Manchester City deal due to ‘vital’ factor – Sky Sports journalist
Kalvin Phillips may not be headed to West Ham on loan after all as the other interested clubs could still respond to strike their own deals with Manchester City, according to Rob Dorsett.
The Sky Sports journalist claimed live on Sky Sports News on 23 January that just because the Irons have agreed with the treble-winners doesn’t mean he will end up at the London Stadium.
Colleague Michael Bridge had just reported “good news potentially for West Ham” as the move looked now to be “moving at a rapid pace”, but Dorsett responded to put the brakes on.
He said that although fellow Sky Sports reporter Tim Thornton, who knows the midfielder well, had made clear the interest and respect between Phillips and David Moyes was long-standing there was still “vital” scope for a rival to sign him instead.
Dorsett said: “The only thing I’d say is, sorry to pour cold water on that for West Ham fans, but we told you last week that there were five other clubs interested in Kalvin Phillips, Juventus, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Newcastle, [Crystal] Palace and West Ham.
“What are those other five clubs doing? Just because West Ham have agreed a loan deal for Kalvin Phillips doesn’t mean he’s gonna go there. That player still has an awful lot of say about where he goes and I think the ball is now in the court of those five other clubs to see how they respond.
“West Ham stolen a march on them… It’s not done yet. As I understand it he’s still flying over from Abu Dhabi where he’s been with Manchester City. Medical? We can’t get that tied down. Doesn’t seem as if that’s imminent, in the next 24 hours. Is it going to be some time in the next few days?
“What does Kalvin Phillips want? We haven’t heard from him. Where he wants to go could have a big say in how those other five clubs respond and could be vital as well.”
Surely not
As with every deal it is not set in stone until a contract has been signed and officially announced, but with the likes of David Ornstein, Fabrizio Romano and others at Sky Sports all suggesting a loan-to-buy deal is set to be sealed this week it seems very likely.
It would be hugely disappointing for West Ham, and specifically David Moyes, if Phillips did decide he wanted one of the other moves and another club then snuck in and agreed their own deal with City.
The 28-year-old is believed to be happy to join the Irons, so Dorsett’s stance seems an overly cautious one unless there have been key developments behind the scenes at one of the rival clubs.
The Irons manager and fans will clearly have to wait to celebrate sealing this deal if it is to go through, but the general consensus is it is the Hammers’ move to complete imminently.
The long-term pursuit by Moyes to land Phillips likely leaves the club in a good position to get this one over the line as he will know he is valued by the Scot, and while midfield didn’t seem the obvious priority heading into the window it is clearly a big deal for the manager so he will hope it gets done.
