A player who decided he needed to move in January probably won’t get to play in a competitive game this month, which is a bad sign for Kalvin Phillips and his short time at Manchester City.

A lot of clubs were interested in Phillips before the winter transfer market even opened, but he went back from Abu Dhabi on Tuesday with Pep Guardiola and the rest of his City teammates without a deal being finalized. West Ham is getting more and more sure that they can come to an agreement, even though their next game isn’t until February 1.

City set a high price for Phillips because they don’t want to lose a respected England player for little money. However, the fact that they won’t have to replace him says it all about his crazy nightmare of a time at the Etihad. Last year, when Joao Cancelo was sent on loan to Bayern, there were gasps. This year, Phillips will be able to leave with almost no fuss.

The main reason for this is that he never made a name for himself on the City team. Even though people were happy when he moved from Leeds for £45 million in the summer of 2022, Guardiola hasn’t really trusted him to play, and when he has, it’s been hard to remember a good game.

Mateo Kovacic, on the other hand, came in this summer and did everything a Rodri helper would do right away on the pre-season tour. His play has been a little off this season, but he is still well ahead of Phillips in the rankings.

Rico Lewis, who has played almost all of this season in midfield, is also good. He played in the big Premier League game at Arsenal when Rodri was banned. Phillips had said that week would be a big chance, but he only started one of the three games that week.

Guardiola recently said that Phillips could be used in a wild game, which was a somewhat negative comment coming from a boss who likes to be in charge of every game. However, Matheus Nunes has become the Blues’ own source of chaos. The player who used to play for Wolves looks like he could fit into City’s system, but he seems to be playing a little outside of it right now; he needs minutes to get used to it.

Three young midfielders are also on the rise. Mahamadou Susoho and Jacob Wright are two who have just made their starts. During a league or cup game, if there is a good time to try something new, either of these two would take it, just like Phillips would have if he had stayed.

By letting Phillips leave, City may lose a player, but they already have a lot of players who can fill in for the England player when he’s not available.