Ipswich have agreed a deal with Manchester City for the season-long loan signing of Kalvin Phillips, who is on the brink of attempting to resurrect his career with the newly promoted club.
The England international is in need of regular football after a frustrating two seasons at City, which included an unsuccessful loan at West Ham this year. Now he has been given the chance to reboot by Kieran McKenna, who would see his acquisition as a significant step in amassing a side that can compete at the highest level.
Phillips is expected in Ipswich for a medical on Thursday and, should the deal be completed in time, he could be in contention for a spot in their squad to face Liverpool at Portman Road on Saturday. It will be their first Premier League match since 2002 and, since returning to the top with two consecutive promotions, they have promised to be bold in the transfer market. A club record £20m move for the Chelsea forward Omari Hutchinson was the pick of their six signings to date but it is the move for Phillips, who has appeared 31 times for the national team, that will raise eyebrows beyond Suffolk.
Everton and Fulham had also been interested in signing Phillips, who went on City’s pre-season trip to the US and fared well in an unfamiliar centre-back role. Despite having four years left on his City deal it has long been clear that his future lies elsewhere, with Pep Guardiola seemingly unconvinced he has the technical qualities to fit their style and famously saying in December 2022 that he had returned from the World Cup overweight. In total he has made 31 appearances for City, only six from the start.
McKenna will hope to unlock the version of Phillips that shot him to stardom as a Leeds player. The 28-year-old was instrumental in England’s run to the Euro 2020 final and may hope that a return to form at Ipswich revives his international prospects. His most recent appearance came as a substitute in last November’s draw away to North Macedonia and he was left out of the Euro 2024 squad.
Ipswich will look to push further in a transfer market that has dealt setbacks along with successes. They still need to strengthen in forward areas and are involved in a long-running pursuit of Blackburn’s Sammie Szmodics. The Napoli midfielder Jens Cajuste, who was close to joining Brentford before that deal collapsed, has been another loan target but it remains to be seen whether they press on with temporary moves for both him and Phillips.