| Last updated on January 26, 2024 at 6:00 AM Manchester City are targeting £60million to replace Calvin Phillips after Liverpool revealed talks for the midfielder.
Manchester City have found a replacement for Calvin Phillips but could face competition from Liverpool, according to a new report.England international Phillips has been loaned out to West Ham until the end of the season after failing to live up to Pep Guardiola’s plans following his £45million move from Leeds to City 18 months ago. Phillips made 31 appearances in all competitions but only two Premier League appearances during his time at City.
Furthermore, the midfielder has made just two appearances since coming on as a substitute against Young Boys on December 7. According to South American publication Bolavip, City want to replace Phillips with Argentine midfielder Allan Barella. Varela became a key player for Portuguese side Porto, attracting interest from several clubs. City are one of them, according to Volaviev, while Liverpool have already approached Porto about a possible move at the end of the season.Barella reportedly has a £60m release clause, but that fee is unlikely to be a major issue for any Premier League side chasing the player. Liverpool offered big sums for Moises Caicedo and Romeo Rabia last summer but could be cashing in on the centre-half as Chelsea snapped him up. Alexis McAllister and Wataru Endo have alternated in defensive midfield this season, but Klopp is likely to continue to upgrade his midfield this summer.
Liverpool have exceeded all expectations this season. After a summer of dramatic change, Klopp mounted a Premier League title challenge, led the club to the Carabao Cup final and qualified for the last 16 of the Europa League. Joel Matip is suffering from a torn ACL in his knee and has made great progress despite a string of injuries to Andy Robertson (dislocated shoulder), Kostas Tsimikas (fracture), Thiago (hip) and Stefan. Weissetic (growing pains) and Ben Doak (knee) were also ruled out.
