Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips attracted a lot of praise on social media after his display against Hungary in the World Cup qualifiers last night.
The 25-year-old defensive midfielder put on a flawless display at the heart of Gareth Southgate’s midfield and he showed exactly why he has been chosen as England’s player of the year.
The Leeds midfielder showed great awareness and anticipation to win possession back for his side and his defensive contribution allowed England to hit their opposition on the break time and again.
1 – England have only conceded one goal from open play in the 1,331 minutes Kalvin Phillips has featured for England across 16 matches. Spine. pic.twitter.com/JTllCv5QCU
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 2, 2021
Phillips has shown remarkable improvement since the arrival of Marcelo Bielsa and the 25-year-old continues to impress for club and country week in week out.
Clearly, the Leeds ace is yet to reach his peak and there is no doubt he could improve further with game time and coaching.
The midfielder has formed a quality partnership alongside West Ham United star Declan Rice and the two players could play a key role in England’s ambitions of doing well in the World Cup next year.
Some of the Leeds fans have taken to Twitter to share their reactions to the 25-year-old’s performance last night and here is what they had to say.
Kalvin Phillips and Declan Rice tonight… 😍🏴
What a duo! pic.twitter.com/TbUfpNylHR
— LUFC Vision (@lufcvision) September 2, 2021
Kalvin Phillips vs Hungary
Minutes 90(+5)
Tackles Won 6/7
Passes Completed 53/58(91%)
Pressures 23
Interceptions 7
Ball Recoveries 6
Shot Creating Actions 1
Clearance 1
Times chilling on the floor waiting for a shit FK to hit him 1Manually collected by @PhilMiles92 pic.twitter.com/cWMm0lwkqx
— All Leeds TV (@AllLeedsTV) September 2, 2021
Kalvin Phillips and Declan Rice.
Best CM partnership in world football.
No debate.#ENG#HUNENG#LUFC pic.twitter.com/CwTDyuNbJ5
— All Leeds TV (@AllLeedsTV) September 2, 2021
Can’t wait to see @LUFCDATA interception stats for @Kalvinphillips tonight. Exceptional. #lufc #HUNENG
— Sam B Booth (@sbbooth) September 2, 2021
Kalvin Phillips vs. Hungary:
85% pass acc.
72 touches
53/62 succ. passes
41 opp. half touches
32 opp.half passes
6 ball recoveries
5 duels won
4/4 tackles won
1/1 succ. take-on
1 interception
1 clean sheetSuperb performance and formed a solid midfield base with Declan Rice. pic.twitter.com/MYRZsoD8kQ
— LUFCDATA (@LUFCDATA) September 2, 2021
Like a blue wall, nothing shall pass, both brilliant tonight 👊🏴
— RICO74LEEDS (@rico74leeds) September 2, 2021
Well done! You were all awesome! 👏👏👏 But it looks like @JackGrealish wants to join in the celebrations and isn’t sure if a 3 is a crowd!🥺😍
— Naomi Burke 💙 (@NSBsparkles) September 3, 2021
Read: How England fans reacted to Declan Rice’s performance vs Hungary.
