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Phillips: Bielsa will be delighted by one Leeds player who's a 'heavy favourite'
Marcelo Bielsa will be delighted how Kalvin Phillips has developed while on international duty with England after a winning return at Leeds United.
That’s according to former Sunderland forward Kevin Phillips, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about how Phillips has been developing while away with the England squad.
Phillips, 25, started all three of England’s recent World Cup qualifiers after continuing to impress with Leeds in the Premier League.
Phillips insists that the Leeds midfielder will be benefitting from playing with ‘elite’ players on England duty and that Bielsa will be ‘delighted’ with his player returning to Thorp Arch with no new injuries.
When asked if playing for England would help Phillips’ development, Phillips told Football Insider correspondent Dylan Childs, “Definitely, you’re playing with the elite.”
“To get as much game time as he’s got, it hasn’t fazed him, he looks comfortable doesn’t he?
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“For me, he’s a shoo-in at the moment. He’s a heavy favourite to go to the tournament in the summer as long as he doesn’t get injured.
“You can rely on him, he’s getting better and better all the time and from a Leeds point of view, Bielsa will be delighted.
“As long as he reports back injury free, you can’t not be happy with such great experience for the player.”
After the international break, Leeds returned to Premier League action with a win as they picked up a 2-1 victory against Yorkshire rivals Sheffield United on Saturday.
The result pushed the Whites up to tenth in the Premier League with eight games to go though most teams below them have at least one game in hand.
In other Leeds United news, an ex-manager has been left wowed by Leeds’ reported swoop for a 17 goal and assist wonderkid who’s the “real deal”.