Who is Kalvin Phillips? The man ready to offer Rice stiff England competition
"I am over the moon," Kalvin Phillips revealed after news broke of his England callup on Tuesday. The Three Lions are back in action next month for the first time since November when they take on Iceland to kick off their UEFA Nations League campaign. Jack Grealish's omission may have been the major talking point, but that shouldn't take anything away from Gareth Southgate's decision to bring Phillips into the senior side.
While Southgate has previously spoken of his desire to not select unproven Premier League players, Phillips has shown enough to prove an exception to the rule after playing a vital role in Leeds United's title success last season. Anchoring the midfield allowed the Whites to score 77 Championship goals last season; only Brentford (84) scored more, albeit having played three more games.
His defensive qualities saw Leeds concede fewer goals (35) than any other side with Phillips vital in attaining both returns. With Jordan Henderson missing out on a place in the squad, there was space for another central midfielder and Southgate elected to bring the Leeds man into the team and it's not without merit.
While Grealish has ample competition for a place in the squad, Phillips' would likely come from Declan Rice as the holding midfielder in the side. Rice, at 21, has seven caps to his name already after making his debut for England last March and has become a mainstay in the setup since, partly due to a lack of competition for his place in the team. Phillips, though, would rival Rice for that spot in the middle of the park, with some suggesting the former should be included in the starting XI at the latter's expense.
That isn't to say Rice isn't deserving of a place in the squad, but if Southgate opts for just one ball winning midfielder, then there is an argument to be made that Phillips could immediately dislodge the West Ham man. Now, Rice ranks better than Phillips for both tackles per 90 (3.1 to 2.7) and interceptions per 90 (2 to 1.4) in their respective leagues last season.
Yet that shouldn't come as too much of a surprise with both West Ham and Leeds implementing different approaches under David Moyes and Marcelo Bielsa, respectively. Indeed, the Hammers would often sit deeper to attempt to hit opponents on the counter, whereas Leeds sought to dominate sides, which they did to a fine standard as noted by their Championship success.
West Ham's possession average of 45.4% was the fifth lowest in the Premier League last season. By comparison, Leeds had a better possession return (59.6%) than any other Championship side last term, so the ball winning weapon in Rice's arsenal was always going to shine through. That's not to take anything away from that aspect to his game, something he does to an extremely high standard, but rather he was carrying out the duties expected of him.
In such a dominant Leeds side, though, Phillips perhaps exceeded expectations and in such a forward-thinking Bielsa team, it ensured the champions weren't caught out at the back when they did commit men forward. As such, it saw Phillips win possession in the midfield third an average of 4.7 times per 90, a slight increase on Rice and his 4.1 times per 90. What is key for any holding midfielder, however, is the ability to successfully recycle possession when they do win the ball.
Both players are incredibly versatile in that regard, with the pair able to drop into defence when the full-backs push forward and the centre-backs pull wide to protect their respective flank. This is also an important trait that sees them pick up the ball from the back, and means they able to ease pressure on the defence and set their respective team on the front foot.
When it does come to picking out a teammate, it's Rice who edges Phillips here. Indeed, the former (86%) had a better pass success rate than the latter (81.8%) in their respective leagues last season. However, Phillips (56.1) made more passes per 90 than Rice (45.6), which might explain why Phillips has a lower pass success rate than Rice.
Given England are one of the bigger sides in international football, they often see more of the ball than opponents, so a player comfortable in such a dominant setup is an immediate boost for Southgate and the Three Lions. That being said, Rice has the advantage of both international and top-flight experience under his belt, which currently has him ahead of Phillips in the England pecking order at present.
"The position he plays is a position where we need competition for places," Southgate said on Tuesday and this is perhaps the key reason behind Phillips' inclusion. There isn't a plethora of talent in the position Rice plays, so Southgate cast a wider net to bring Phillips into the squad to ensure the West Ham star continues to play to his high standards in order to keep his England spot.
However, even if Phillips doesn't yet ply his trade in the Premier League, his inclusion in the latest England squad is entirely justified on the back of his fine Championship campaign for title winning Leeds and you can be sure he'll provide stiff competition for Rice in the middle of the park.
