Pep Guardiola has admitted he feels guilty for not giving Kalvin Phillips more minutes at Manchester City.
Phillips joined from Leeds United in 2022 but has struggled to break into Guardiola’s side. Since then, he has made just two Premier League starts for City, with loan spells at West Ham and Ipswich also proving difficult.
The midfielder has not featured for City since December 2023. An Achilles injury derailed a possible summer move, but he is now back in training with the Spaniard’s squad.
Asked why things never clicked for the Englishman at City, Guardiola was honest.
“It’s a good question. Maybe because I didn’t give enough minutes. In that moment, Rodri was fit and looks like our father in that time, protecting the other 10 sons. Maybe the way we played, it was completely different to Leeds.
“Always I believe in that level, all the players are really, really good. It’s just the environment, how they connect with the way we play. And the players play good when they have games, games, games, and I didn’t give them.”
Despite that, the City boss had only praise for the England international’s character.
“When that happens, I feel bad, but he’s an incredible person. Now he’s come back here. He will train with us, we’ll try to help him and maybe he can play some games and get confident.”
The 29-year-old will now hope for a fresh opportunity to prove himself in sky blue as City face another demanding run of fixtures.
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