Leeds United have become used to losing some of their best players across the past couple of seasons, whether that be down to relegation woes, a promotion near-miss or simply a club higher up the food chain swooping in to render the Whites powerless.
The second of those options was definitely apparent this summer, as the likes of Georginio Rutter, Crysencio Summerville and Archie Gray all left for pastures new in the Premier League, after Daniel Farke’s side agonisingly missed out on the sweet taste of promotion out of the Championship.
Kalvin Phillips’ exit falls into the final category, away from that much-lauded trio all deserting Elland Road this summer, as the Leeds-born midfielder left for Manchester City back in 2022 to the dismay of fans in West Yorkshire.
Phillips' exit from Leeds
Everyone with connections to Leeds that summer must have been anticipating that Phillips was going to move on, regardless of any local pride the midfielder still held for his boyhood employers.
A fully-fledged senior England international by the time of his £45m exit to the Etihad, the 28-year-old had arguably outgrown his hometown club, who stumbled to an unconvincing 17th-place finish in the top-flight during his swansong campaign at Elland Road.
Phillips would bow out from the Whites with 234 senior appearances next to his name, with the daunting task on Leeds’ shoulders to adequately replace their star man.
This was an understandable struggle, with hopes once resting on this academy product that he could become the next Phillips, even when the former Leeds number 23 was still on the books of the club.
The player tipped to be the next Phillips
Of course, labelling someone as the next iteration of a club legend often backfires and sets up the player in question to fail, away from ever really working positively.
That was definitely the case in the example of Alfie McCalmont, who would only go on to make two forgettable senior appearances for the Whites, despite bold cries once upon a time that he could be Phillips 2.0.
As indicated below, Marcelo Bielsa felt the academy star was “ready” to fill the shoes of the midfielder, in the event of his potential exit.
Those cries would also come from former Leeds player Noel Whelan back in 2020, who was clearly taken aback by McCalmont’s electric showings in the youth set-up at Thorp Arch, with Whelan stating that the young midfielder was ‘learning his trade’ by watching Phillips and could even go on to be a smart replacement for the homegrown talent down the line…
“McCalmont I have seen a few times now and he is very capable. He was tipped to replace Kalvin or be that second string to Kalvin throughout the season.
“A very good player, great on the ball and a good football mind. He is one that is learning his trade from watching Kalvin and being in and around that first-team setup.
“It is important that these young lads are integrated. It is vital for their progression and to give them confidence to step in when needed because there will be injuries and suspensions. Use them – that is why you have an academy and youth policy.”
However, despite some encouraging performances for the U21s and some impressive loan spells away from Leeds at Oldham Athletic among other clubs, McCalmont would be allowed to walk away from West Yorkshire permanently in 2023 to move to Carlisle United.
Club played for
Games played
Goals scored
Assists
Leeds
2
0
0
Oldham
39
10
5
Morecambe
31
1
2
Carlisle
54
4
0
Central Coast Mariners
6
0
1
In truth, the Northern Ireland international has found it hard to nail down a fixed address to call home away from Leeds, with the 24-year-old now amazingly on the roster of Central Coast Mariners out in Australia.
There is some logic behind this major change of scenery, however, with ex-Leeds academy coach Mark Jackson at the helm, as McCalmont tries to breathe life back into his playing days at the reigning A-League champions.
It’s fair to say McCalmont’s career hasn’t played out like he’d want it to have, amid that early praise from Bielsa, considering he was tipped to follow in the footsteps of Phillips, but he will aim to pick up the pieces of his up-and-down career out in Australia.
Whereas, his former employers will hope they can develop some more top talents through their fertile youth set-up akin to the likes of Gray, away from falling victim to more errors like this unfortunate tale.
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