MX23RW : Friday, January 10 11:07:19| >> :120:8487:8487:

Kalvin Phillips "very hopeful" of England World call-up

Kalvin Phillips
© Reuters
Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips is "very hopeful" that he will be included in England's World Cup squad.

Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips is "very hopeful" of being included in England's World Cup squad.

The 26-year-old completed a £45m move from Leeds United in the summer, but a shoulder injury has restricted him to three substitute appearances.

Having spent nearly two months on the sidelines, Phillips is expected to be on the bench for City's EFL cup tie against Chelsea on Wednesday.

Ahead of his imminent return to action, the England international has been speaking about his recovery from shoulder surgery.

Phillips told BBC Radio 5 Live: "The shoulder's perfectly fine now. "I have gone through a seven-week process of recovering as fast as I possibly can for the World Cup. Everything is going great.

"I've obviously not done it for quite a long time now but I've kept my fitness up and I'd like to think I could play 90 minutes."

Commenting on his World Cup hopes, he said: "I'm not too sure yet. I'm very hopeful that I can be involved. We will have to wait and see.

"Pep has been great and he has spoken to me quite a lot. It is part of football and he understands that. After my first full contact session the other day he said he would hopefully try and get me minutes against Chelsea.

"[Following surgery] I spoke to Gareth and told him about my situation. I said I understood if he didn't select me but he reassured me that 'as long as you're fit enough and you prove you're progressing well, there's always a chance you will be called up'.

"I've done everything in my power to be as fit as possible and hopefully I will be involved."

While Phillips could be involved against Chelsea in midweek, Southgate is expected to name his 26-man England squad on Thursday November 10.

ID:499180:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect2285:
Written by
Ben Sully

Click here for more stories about Kalvin Phillips

Click here for more stories about Manchester City

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah scores their second goal on November 6, 2022
Read Next:
Premier League Team of the Week - Salah, Gabriel, Tielemans
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool19144147192846
2Arsenal20117239182140
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest20124429191040
4Chelsea20106439241536
5Newcastle UnitedNewcastle20105534221235
6Manchester CityMan City2010463627934
7Bournemouth209653023733
8Aston Villa209563032-232
9Fulham207943027330
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2061043029128
11Brentford208393835327
12Tottenham HotspurSpurs20731042301224
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd206592328-523
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham206592439-1523
15Crystal Palace204972128-721
16Everton193881525-1017
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2044123145-1416
18Ipswich TownIpswich2037102035-1516
19Leicester CityLeicester2035122344-2114
20Southampton2013161244-326


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!