Real Madrid Are Keeping Tabs On This Leeds United Midfielder: Wise Move For Los Blancos? | OneFootball

Defensa Central has recently claimed that Real Madrid are keeping tabs on Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips. It has been revealed that Los Blancos were left impressed by the Whites midfield ace’s brilliant performance for England in their 1-0 win over Croatia in the opening game of the UEFA European Championships recently (via Defensa Central).

Phillips’ Outstanding Season At Leeds

Phillips had another excellent season under Marcelo Bielsa’s expert stewardship at Elland Road last season when he managed to give a good account of himself at the centre of the park. The England international appeared in 30 matches for the West Yorkshire outfit in the previous campaign, netting one goal and providing two assists in multiple competitions.

The 25-year-old deserves a lot of praise for averaging 2.6 tackles, 1.6 interceptions, 1.7 clearances, 0.5 shots, 1.2 key passes and 0.7 dribbles per 90 minutes in the last Premier League campaign. He was also exceptional with his ball distribution after making 84.7% of his attempted passes in the English first division (stats via whoscored).

Phillips’s current Leeds contract is set to run out in the summer of 2024, so it won’t be easy for Los Blancos to orchestrate a move to lure him to the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium during this summer transfer period.

Will Landing Phillips Be A Wise Move For Carlo Ancelotti?

Phillips is a physically strong and powerful midfielder who can make life difficult for the opposition in midfield. He is a decent tackler of the ball and can sense the danger quickly to make a few crucial interceptions at the back. He can also pull off some important recovering runs inside his half and doesn’t mind putting his foot through the ball when in danger of being caught out on the defensive end of the field.

Phillips excels at pressing the opponent high up the field and has got a good passing range in his locker as well. The Leeds-born talent has often been used as a defensive midfielder by Bielsa but he is also versatile enough to fill in as a centre-back if needed.

An up-and-coming two-way player like Phillips will be a massive coup for Los Blancos if they can get a deal done for him in this off-season. He will add plenty of bite and steel to Carlo Ancelotti’s midfield and could potentially form a dominant defensive midfield partnership with Casemiro at the Bernabeu in the coming seasons.

Hence, Ancelotti would be wise to launch a move to secure the services of the Leeds United workhorse ahead of the new campaign as he will undoubtedly increase competition for places within his Real Madrid squad.