Leeds United's automatic promotion hopes suffered a big blow over the weekend as they were beaten 2-1 by Coventry City at the CBS Arena on Saturday.
The Whites have now dropped down to third in the Championship table after Leicester City beat Birmingham City, whilst Ipswich Town remain one point ahead after their 1-0 loss to Norwich City.
This means that Daniel Farke's side do not hold their fate in their own hands as they are now relying on the Foxes and the Tractor Boys slipping up to provide them with an opportunity to move back into the top two.
The Yorkshire-based outfit are vying to secure promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, and have reportedly already identified possible targets to bolster their squad should they return to the top-flight next season.
In fact, it has been claimed that the Whites are eyeing up one of their former top division stars under Marcelo Bielsa for a potential return to Elland Road.
Leeds United's interest in Premier League flop
In February, Football Insider reported that Leeds are interested in a deal to bring England international Kalvin Phillips back to Yorkshire this summer.
The outlet stated that the club are keen to swoop in for the Manchester City flop to sign him back on a permanent deal, if they win promotion back to the Premier League.
It also claimed that the Whites will 'spend heavily' to bolster their options across the park if they are in the top-flight next season, and that a midfield 'kingpin' will be one of their biggest priorities, which is why Phillips has emerged as a possible target for Farke.
The report said that Leeds are expecting the central midfielder to return to The Etihad at the end of his loan spell with West Ham United before being sold on a permanent basis this summer.
Football Insider's latest claim (06/04/2024) is that it could cost between £30m and £40m for the club, or any other interested parties, to secure a move for the English enforcer ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.
Journalist Pete O'Rourke is quoted as saying that it will take "big money" for any team that wants to snap Phillips up on a permanent deal from City.
The reporter also states that West Ham are unlikely to pursue a move to keep the former Leeds star beyond the end of his current loan spell, due to his struggles on the pitch since his switch to the London Stadium at the start of the year.
With this latest information, the Whites must now avoid a reunion with Phillips unless the price comes down as the club could, otherwise, repeat the blunder Victor Orta made with Rodrigo.
The Spanish forward was brought in for a huge fee at the age of 29 and that meant that Leeds did not get much in the way of resale value for him.
Leeds United's Rodrigo blunder
In the summer of 2020, Orta swooped in to sign the attacker from Valencia for a club-record fee of £27m after Bielsa led the team to the Championship title.
It was a significant, record-breaking, fee to pay for a player who turned 30 during that season, and he struggled to justify the price tag during his first two seasons at Elland Road.
Rodrigo produced 13 goals and three assists in 57 Premier League appearances across the 2020/21 and 2021/22 campaigns combined, which is a return of one goal every 4.38 matches on average.
Leeds achieved survival in both of those seasons but the Spain international failed to provide consistent quality at the top end of the pitch for Bielsa or Jesse Marsch.
Appearances
31
Goals
13
Big chances missed
4
Assists
1
Key passes per game
0.5
Duel success rate
36%
Ironically, his best season for goals in a Leeds shirt came in the season that they were relegated back to the Championship, as you can see in the table above.
Rodrigo scored 13 goals in 31 Premier League matches but it was not enough to keep the Whites in the Premier League, and the club cashed in on him at the end of the campaign.
Qatar-based side Al Rayyan swooped in to sign him for £3m – the value of his relegation release clause – and this meant that Leeds made a loss of £24m on the forward who failed to provide consistent quality on the pitch.
Why Kalvin Phillips could be Rodrigo 2.0
Phillips turns 29 this year and would not be a signing with much resale value for the Whites, much like the 2020 signing of 29-year-old Rodrigo.
A fee of up to £40m would be a significant outlay for Leeds and one that would have to work out on the pitch to be considered a success, as there would be little chance of them recouping that for a player of his age if his performances on the field are not good enough to attract interest from elsewhere.
Like with Rodrigo, Phillips is not a young player who has the potential to grow and develop over the coming years to increase his value, which places a greater emphasis on his short-term displays.
The issue with that is the English flop has been in worrying form for the Hammers since his move from Manchester City on loan in January.
Appearances
7
29
WhoScored rating
5.82
7.01
Goal contributions
0
3
Errors led to goal
1
1
Penalties committed
1
0
Red cards
1
0
As you can see in the table above, his performances for West Ham this year are a million miles away from the standard of his displays during his first season in the Premier League with Leeds under Bielsa.
There is no guarantee that, however, that Phillips will be able to return to the form that convinced Manchester City to pay £45m for his services in 2022.
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His sloppy showings on the pitch for the Hammers, with more red cards, penalties committed, and errors leading to goals than goal contributions in midfield, may carry over to next season unless he can turn his form around.
Therefore, Leeds must avoid a reunion with Phillips if City demand as much as £40m as his performances suggest that it would be a Rodrigo-esque blunder to sign an underperforming, experienced, player with little resale value for a huge fee.
As much as it could be a sentimental move for the academy graduate to return to Elland Road, the fee that is reportedly required to get it done does not make this a smart move for the club on paper.
