Barcelona rule out move for Manchester City outcast, player likely to join West Ham or Newcastle

With Barcelona scouring the market for a new midfielder in the ongoing January transfer window, the name of Manchester City outcast Kalvin Phillips had been doing the rounds quite a bit of late.

The Catalans’ sporting director Deco is an admirer of the 28-year-old midfielder. Given that the player is seeking an exit, the Portuguese was keen on bringing him in to the club.

But given the Financial Fair Play problems persisting at the club, a deal was always going to be difficult to pull off.

Kalvin Phillips move off

And now, as per Toni Juanmarti of SPORT, Barcelona have ruled out the possibility of signing Kalvin Phillips on loan from Manchester City this month.

The La Liga champions liked the English midfielder’s profile due to his positioning and intensity. They even had brief contact with his entourage, although there were no talks held with Manchester City.

However, the possibility of bringing Phillips in is no longer on the table. For starters, Barcelona still has no ‘fair play’ to make any move.

The Blaugrana have been in constant contact with La Liga to try and assess how they could generate wage space. However, the league continues to remind Barça that without the €40 million from Libero still to be paid, there is no option of signing anyone.

Phillips unlikely to join Barça. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

On top of that, but Manchester City want whoever signs Phillips to take over a high percentage of his salary, something that Barça could hardly do. What’s more, they are also asking for a loan fee, reportedly around €8 million.

All this makes the operation unfeasible for Barcelona.

West Ham or Newcastle the likely destination

The report further states that Phillips is expected to remain in the Premier League even if he leaves Manchester City on loan.

West Ham United, who are already making a concrete push for his signing, and Newcastle United are touted as the frontrunners to sign the England international.

As for Barcelona, any incoming operation looks extremely unlikely unless there is a cash injection into the club from somewhere.