According to Danny Murphy, Kalvin Phillips could replace Tomaž Souček in the starting line-up if he moves from Manchester City to West Ham in January.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Murphy stressed that Phillips, an England international, needs consistent playing time and hinted that joining West Ham could be a useful move for the 28-year-old, who is keen to cement his place in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the upcoming European Championships.
Murphy further noted that despite the impressive performance of summer signing Edson Alvarez, the potential acquisition of Calvin Phillips by West Ham suggests that the club would not have opted for a transfer if Phillips was not going to secure playing time.
Therefore, Murphy suggests that Czech international Tomas Soucek would be the most likely candidate to find himself on the bench at the London Stadium if Phillips were to join the squad.
“He’s a talented lad who needs a platform to play on, he’s got an England team he wants to get into and I think it would be a good move for him,” Murphy told talkSPORT.
“But if you look at the midfield West Ham have, I know they are still in two competitions and there are still a few games to go, but Alvarez has been sensational since he arrived.”
He added: “I don’t think Moyes and the club would have gone to great lengths and invested the money if we hadn’t played him. I think he will take Soucek’s place.”
If Soucek ends up being replaced by Kalvin Phillips, it would be very disappointing for him given his excellent performances in recent months. Although the start of the campaign without Declan Rice by his side was a bit shaky, Soucek managed to establish a solid partnership with Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse later in the season.