Arsenal are keen to secure the services of Manchester City outcast Kalvin Phillips.
According to TeamTalk, Arsenal are keen to sign a new midfielder in the upcoming January transfer window, with Kalvin Phillips one of the targets that Mikel Arteta is interested in.
The Gunners recognise that they need to replace Thomas Partey. Arsenal must now move on from the Ghanaian, as his injury issues mean that he can no longer be relied upon to be fit and available when required.
However, funds will be tight at the Emirates Stadium this winter. Arsenal spent heavily in the summer, leaving little left in the coffers to bolster the squad mid-way through the campaign. As per the aforementioned report, Arsenal only have a budget of around £30 million to spend on midfield reinforcements.
It is doubtful that Manchester City would allow Phillips to leave for such a fee, given they spent £45 million to prise him away from Leeds United in the summer of 2022.
Not that Phillips has lived up to his price tag in his time at the Etihad Stadium. The 27-year-old has made just five starts across all competitions for the reigning Premier League champions since his arrival at the club.
Manchester City have good reason to not sell Kalvin Phillips to Arsenal
With EURO 2024 on the horizon, the 30-cap England international needs to be playing regular football at club level. Phillips may well be ready to force an exit from Manchester City in January, which could provoke Pep Guardiola into accepting a discounted fee for the player.
Even if that were the case, though, Manchester City would surely be reluctant to allow Phillips to join Arsenal. The Gunners are likely to be one of their closest challengers for the Premier League this season, and Guardiola won’t want to strengthen his direct rivals.
Having seen how Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko left Manchester City and raised the level at Arsenal, Manchester City won’t want to hand another player over to Arteta.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
