Pep Guardiola makes surprising Kalvin Phillips claim after Man City exit

Pep Guardiola admits Kalvin Phillips needs regular minutes after his move to Ipswich was confirmed - with the Catalan not closing the door to a future for him at Manchester City.

The midfielder has joined the Premier League new boys on loan and will spend the year at Portman Road, where he's expected to be regular. He's been anything but since he opted to leave Leeds in 2021 and move to the Etihad.

Phillips has been unable to dislodge Rodri at the base of midfield - the position where he shone for Leeds and then England. It has meant that the 28-year-old has largely been sat on the bench with his minutes largely limited to substitute cameos. It led to him heading out on loan to West Ham in January - a switch that didn't work for either party.

Guardiola, as he prepares to win a fifth successive league title with City, concedes Phillips was unlikely to get the necessary minutes with his exit a positive. The Catalan said: "He has to have minutes, he has to recover game time, play, play, play, play. And we thought that maybe he would not have the minutes he would have, that he deserves to have."

He went on to add: "It's better for him to have minutes to maybe, in the future, have the chance to come back to Man City"

In his debut year in Manchester, Phillips started just two league games and last term he wasn't picked from the start at all before being allowed to head to the London Stadium, where his performance levels failed to improve.

Phillips' demise in recent seasons has also cost him his England spot. When he was at his peak at Leeds, the midfielder was starting for the Three Lions and excelled when they made the final of Euro 2020, commanding a spot in the middle of the pitch alongside Declan Rice.

During his spell in Manchester Phillips has copped flack from Guardiola, who previously claimed the ex-Leeds man was overweight amid suggestions he was injured. The City boss said: "He's not injured. He arrived overweight. I don't know [why]. He didn't arrive in the condition to do training sessions and to play."

Phillips will now hope to play a leading role for the Tractor Boys, who have enjoyed back-to-back promotions under Kieran McKenna. It means they are heavily fancied to face the drop but have they've landed several signings to aid their survival hopes - including Phillips' City team-mate Liam Delap.