The incredible Newcastle comeback at St. James’ Park was ignited by Kalvin Phillips’ foul, which prolonged his horrendous loan stay at West Ham.
Consequently, what happened?
After coming on as a replacement in the 69th minute, Phillips gave up a penalty for a foul on Anthony Gordon seven minutes later. Gordon nipped in to poke the ball away from the West Ham player who had taken the winger out due to a mishandled clearance, outpacing Phillips in speed. Taking his second penalty of the match, Alexander Isak scored again from the spot kick to pull his team within one goal of the Hammers. Harvey Barnes’ brace to win the game for the Magpies in the closing minutes of play made things worse for Phillips and the Hammers.
WHAT THE FANS ARE SAYING
Bemused by Phillips’ misfortune, fans flocked to X to share their opinion on the midfielder. @UtdEra_ said: “Kalvin Phillips to West Ham could go down as the worst loan of all time. He’s shocking.”
West Ham fan @alanrzepa could not believe it. He said: “Kalvin Phillips can’t play for us ever again.”
@HughMurray1894 added: “I actually feel bad for Kalvin Phillips at this point.”
@thomasjrennie believes there are higher powers at stake. He said: “Never, ever bring on Kalvin Phillips. He’s cursed.”
Jamie Kent drew comparisons to another awful loan signing. He said: “Kalvin Phillips is having genuinely one of the worse loan spells I’ve seen since Denis Suarez at Arsenal.”
THE LARGER IMAGE
Since moving on loan to West Ham, Phillips’ situation has gotten worse. He is no longer included in the England roster. He can be unfortunate to have given up the penalty because he didn’t realize Gordon was behind him when he attempted to clear the ball, but he could have responded more quickly and might have been at ease when the spot-kick was awarded.
WHAT HAS PHILLIPS NEXT?
Phillips has a limited amount of time left to prove he is still talented enough to represent England in the summer European Championship. However, at the moment, he seems to have fewer opportunities each time he plays. The career of the former Leeds captain has taken a drastic turn after his disastrous transfer to Manchester City.
