BREAKING NEWS: “I want him to gather his belongings and leave; I don’t want to see him in my club again. He failed to defend the ball, missed an open goal, and contributed to the second goal,” Pep Guardiola has ordered the Manchester City player to exit the club immediately following a surprising defeat to Celtic.

Manchester City’s preseason tour in the United States kicked off with a 4-3 loss to Celtic, a top Scottish team. City found themselves down 3-1 at halftime, with Nicolas Kuhn scoring twice and Kyogo Furuhashi adding another goal for Celtic. City’s Oscar Bobb managed to score one goal in the first half.

The second half saw City mounting a comeback, with Maximo Perrone and Erling Haaland scoring to level the game at 3-3. However, Celtic’s substitute Luis Palma scored the decisive goal, handing City the loss.

Despite the defeat, the result is not of primary importance during preseason matches, which are more about preparation and experimentation.

Nonetheless, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was not entirely pleased with the performance. One area of concern was the performance of Kalvin Phillips, who played in the match.

Phillips had been loaned to West Ham United the previous season in hopes of regaining his form, but he struggled to find his footing there, much like his time at City. He lacked confidence, as noted in his recent display against Celtic, where he was often off the pace.

Phillips has been the subject of recent transfer speculation, with potential loan moves to Everton and interest from Fulham being reported. However, his future at Manchester City remains uncertain.

After the game, Guardiola spoke about Phillips’ situation, noting that he had trained well and played a decent first half, especially considering he was coming off an injury.

Guardiola did not provide a definitive answer about Phillips’ future, suggesting that the club would evaluate the situation as it develops.

In contrast, Guardiola has confirmed that Kevin De Bruyne will stay with the club, highlighting a lack of similar assurance for Phillips.

This ambiguity suggests that Phillips might not have a long-term future at City. The situation will depend on whether City can find a suitable arrangement, possibly a transfer or loan that aligns with the club’s interests.

Given his performance and the manager’s comments, it seems unlikely that Phillips will remain with Manchester City for the upcoming 2024/25 season.