Pep Guardiola accuses Kelvin Phillips of returning from World Cup ‘overweight’

• Manchester City midfielder Kalvin has been unable to train after his World Cup stint with England.
• Pep Guardiola was initially vague as to why Kelvin Phillips was not on the bench for Thursday’s League Cup.
• Manchester City had 16 players on international duty at the World Cup.

Pep Guardiola stated on Friday that Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips returned “overweight” and unable to train after his World Cup stint with England.

Guardiola was initially vague as to why the injury-prone 27-year-old was not even on the bench for Thursday’s League Cup victory over defending champions Liverpool at Etihad Stadium.

However, following City’s 3-2 victory that advanced them to the quarterfinals, Guardiola stated: “He’s not injured. He arrived overweight. I don’t know (why). He didn’t arrive in the condition to do training sessions and to play.”

City had 16 players on international duty at the World Cup, more than any other Premier League club, and they were all granted time off after their participation in Qatar 2022 concluded, which in Phillips’ case occurred after England’s quarterfinal loss to France.

“When he will be ready he will play, because we need him, we need him a lot,” Guardiola said, adding that he had “absolutely no problem” with England’s training regimen.

When asked if he was disappointed, the Spanish manager replied, “It’s a private conversation with Kalvin”.

On Wednesday, City resumes their Premier League title defence against Phillips’ former club, Leeds.

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