Kalvin Phillips is part of Southgate’s squad for the World Cup
His aspirations of playing in Qatar were almost dashed when Kalvin Phillips threw a clanger. The Manchester City player was called-up to England’s World Cup team just as he was making a full recovery from a shoulder surgery.
Then, in advance of City’s match against Brentford last week, he gambled everything by allowing a 5 kg weight to fall on his foot. The midfielder chopped up his left flip-flop to prevent it from rubbing against the cut, saying: “It’s a good story to be honest!
“So before that game, being the professional I am, I went to the gym before the match and was just doing loads of Achilles work on the leg press.
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“I’d gone to pull a weight off the rack and there must have been one stuck behind it and I pulled it off and it landed on my foot and cut it all.
“I stood for about ten seconds and thought, ‘Oh my God — what was that?’
“If it wasn’t a 5kg plate, if it had been heavier, I think it would have been a lot worse.
“Imagine that, that is what you get for being professional!
“But it’s not too bad, the blisters from training hurt more.”
