Manchester City injury update: manager Pep Guardiola calls Kalvin Phillips “overweight”
The Manchester City manager explained the surprise absence of the midfielder from the squad against Liverpool.
At first, it appeared that Pep Guardiola would be coy on explaining the reason behind the absence of Kalvin Phillips from the Manchester City squad against Liverpool. The midfielder has been plagued by injuries ever since his days at Leeds United - another one on the list would be another sigh from the fans who are yet to see him make a competitive start all season. Pep was keeping Phillips away from the headlines, or so we thought.
Then came the bang: “Kalvin Phillips is not fit. He did not arrive in the best condition to train and play”, Pep said. The poor guy, first his shoulder, then he dropped a gym weight on his foot. Pep continued, “he is not injured, he arrived overweight.”
For managers to keep injury specifics to themselves is a common occurrence: like Phillips in the past, freak moments can happen and as such, the reasons behind not making the squad can often be avoided or even lied about. For Pep Guardiola to explain Phillips’ absence in public - and for that reason to be labelled as being “overweight” - potentially highlights a sense of frustration with the player who only played 40 minutes in Qatar.
Why is Kalvin Phillips overweight?
Simply put, nobody knows, Guardiola included. The Athletic reported that Kalvin Phillips should be fit within a week but he may miss out on a return to his old club Leeds United. The midfielder hasn’t started a competitive game all season for the Manchester side, and Guardiola highlighted that the team have been feeling his lack of presence: “when he will be ready he will play but we need him. We need him a lot”, the manager said.
Manchester City injury update
Nathan Ake and Aymeric Laporte returned to Manchester early after the club allowed players who played at the World Cup extra time off. Defender Rúben Dias is the biggest concern for the club following his injury sustained at the World Cup with Portugal.
