Manchester City ready to ‘tear up’ contract of midfielder to enable free summer exit | OneFootball

Manchester City director of football Hugo Viana is ready to enable a free transfer exit from the club for Kalvin Phillips, according to a new report.

Phillips has endured a torrid club career since moving from boyhood club Leeds United to the Etihad Stadium in the summer of 2022 off the back of an eye-catching season at Elland Road.

The 30-year-old struggled for fitness in his debut campaign at Manchester City and hardly kicked a ball until midway through the 2023-24 season, when he joined West Ham on a six month loan but failed to earn a permanent transfer.

City sanctioned a season-long loan for the England international to Ipswich Town last summer in a hope that he could revitalise a faltering career but the Yorkshireman suffered relegation and returned to the Etihad Stadium with an Achilles injury.

Phillips’ season at Man City and Sheffield United so far

That fitness setback last summer prevented the Englishman from securing a loan move away from City, playing seven minutes off the bench in a 2-0 Carabao Cup win away at Huddersfield Town in September 2025.

Phillips secured a late January loan to Sheffield United in January but doubts over the Manchester City midfielder’s club future have risen further after he suffered a knee injury against Sheffield Wednesday – a game in which he was also shown a straight red card.

Having undergone a minor operation, he is expected to return to action for the Blades after the ongoing international break as he eyes a positive finish to another turbulent season that has barely witnessed him playing football.

It is a sad indictment of Phillips’ career trajectory since he joined Manchester City that England are gearing up for the FIFA World Cup in the summer and the 30-year-old is not even part of the conversation for a seat on the plane across the Atlantic.

What has been reported on Phillips’ club future?

Phillips is contracted at the Etihad Stadium till the summer of 2028, with two full seasons remaining on the midfielder’s current deal in the north-west after he returns to his parent club after ending a loan stint at Bramall Lane in June.

Manchester City will progress with their rebuild of the first-team squad in the upcoming transfer window, having prioritised the acquisition of a world-class midfielder amid interest in Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson and Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali.

According to new claims, Manchester City are ready to ‘tear up’ the remainder of Phillips’ contract with the club in order to allow him to leave the Etihad Stadium on a free transfer at the end of the current season.

The Blues are bracing themselves for a series of notable exits from the dressing room, with club captain Bernardo Silva, John Stones, Nathan Ake, Manuel Akanji, Jack Grealish and Mateo Kovacic among those who could leave the club ahead of the 2026-27 season.