What Marcelo Bielsa said to Kalvin Phillips when he was really close to signing for Aston Villa

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Having left Leeds United back in the summer of 2022, Kalvin Phillips is set to be on the move again this month.

Phillips is on the verge of joining West Ham United on loan until the end of the season as he looks to secure some regular game time ahead of the European Championships in the summer.

Though Phillips was part of a treble winning side last season, it is fair to say his move to Manchester City from Elland Road did not go to plan, making just two Premier League starts across his whole time at the club.

Phillips’ performances at Leeds are what earned him his big move to City, helping his boyhood club to the Championship title, a ninth place finish in the Premier League, and a narrow final day relegation escape.

However, it could’ve been a whole lot different. Back in 2019, Aston Villa were close to signing him and according to the Athletic, Marcelo Bielsa told him if he was to stay, he had to be 100 per cent committed, or face being dropped into the U21s.

Bielsa would’ve dropped Phillips into Leeds’ U21s

In the end, Phillips opted to stay at Elland Road and was a huge part of Leeds finally securing their return to the Premier League under Bielsa after 16 years away.

Bielsa was the type of manager who did not try to form close relationships with his players, but at Leeds, Phillips was some sort of exception.

Patrick Bamford revealed a couple of months ago how Bielsa once said if he had to choose a member of the Leeds squad to marry his daughter, it would be Phillips.

Phillips has lost a lot of his confidence on the pitch since leaving Leeds, where he was always one of the main men. Hopefully he can go and re-find that at West Ham.

There could be a big summer ahead for him with Gareth Southgate almost certain to include him in the England squad for the EUROs.