WOLVES OPEN FORMAL TALKS WITH MANCHESTER CITY TO SIGN MIDFIELDER KALVIN PHILLIPS
Wolves explore a January move for Kalvin Phillips as Joao Gomes agrees a Napoli deal. Can the Man City man revive his career?
Kalvin Phillips, who once anchored England’s midfield, looks set for a lifeline out of Manchester City this January. Wolves want him, according to reports, and honestly, it’s not hard to see why. Phillips has barely featured for City this season—just one appearance under Pep Guardiola—and he’s been on the fringes for a while now.
The Daily Mail says Wolves have had their eye on Phillips for some time. They’re trying to pull off a deal before the transfer window shuts on February 2. With Joao Gomes and Andre attracting attention from other clubs, Wolves need reinforcements in midfield. They value Phillips’ Premier League experience, and with their recent five-game unbeaten streak, they’re hoping to pull away from the bottom of the table.
Phillips’ City story never really got off the ground. After his £42 million move from Leeds in 2022, he played 21 times in his first season but then saw his minutes dry up. He managed only 10 appearances the next year before heading out on loan to West Ham—a rough stint that saw him clash with the fans.
After that, City loaned him to Ipswich Town for the entire 2024-25 season. He played 22 games and scored once, but Ipswich went straight back down to the Championship. This season at City, Phillips has only come off the bench once, helping them see out a 2-0 Carabao Cup win over Huddersfield.
And then there’s Guardiola’s public criticism. Right after the 2022 World Cup, the city boss called Phillips “overweight”. Guardiola later apologised, saying he regretted how he handled it, insisting he always speaks to his players first. Phillips said he didn’t agree with Guardiola’s assessment but tried to take it on the chin and get fit. Still, the comment blew up, and he admitted it was tough to shake off. He was back on the bench for Leeds right after and kept himself match-ready, chalking it all up to a misunderstanding.
Now, with Wolves circling and City ready to let him go, Phillips finally has a shot at a fresh start.
AWONIYI DOUBLE LEAVES NOTTINGHAM FOREST ON THE VERGE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SAFETY
Nottingham Forest moved closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Chelsea, while West Ham fell into the relegation zone after Spurs won.
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Nottingham Forest came out of the weekend looking pretty safe after pulling off an impressive 3-1 win at Chelsea. They’re almost clear of the relegation mess. Tottenham’s big away win at Aston Villa shook things up too, and now West Ham are back in the bottom three, running out of time faster than ever.
Forest have stepped up just when they needed to, leaving West Ham and Tottenham behind with a string of solid performances. Honestly, no one saw this coming, especially since Vitor Pereira shuffled his lineup with eight changes, fresh off a Europa League win against Aston Villa.
Even so, Forest were ahead within 90 seconds, thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s quick strike. By the 15th minute, Igor Jesus calmly buried a penalty after Malo Gusto’s reckless foul in the box. Chelsea had a chance to get back in it, but Cole Palmer wasted a penalty right before the break after a scary head collision involving Jesse Derry.
Awoniyi doubled down and scored again early in the second half, pushing Forest six points ahead of West Ham with just three games left.
West Ham’s weekend started badly; they looked flat and lost to Brentford. Things got worse Sunday night when Tottenham pulled off their first back-to-back Premier League wins since August 2025, beating a heavily rotated Aston Villa side 2-1.
Forest is now out of West Ham’s reach, or almost. Tottenham’s still close enough for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team to worry, but with three tough games coming up, Spurs could stay up even without another win, unless West Ham digs deep and pulls off something unexpected before their home finale against Leeds.
Right now, Forest can practically taste safety. Spurs finally see a way out after weeks of struggle. As for West Ham, they’re left hoping for a miracle, a last-minute twist to dodge the drop.
CESC FABREGAS CONFIRMS INTEREST IN PREMIER LEAGUE RETURN AMID CHELSEA'S MANAGER SEARCH
As Chelsea searches for a new manager, Cesc Fabregas breaks his silence on his future at Como and his Premier League ambitions.
Cesc Fabregas recalls exactly how a conversation with Jose Mourinho prompted him to join Chelsea, despite having the opportunity to return to Arsenal.
After winning six trophies in just three seasons, the Spanish World Cup winner left Barcelona for the second time in 2014. That summer, Fabregas made a move back to the Premier League, signing with Chelsea for about €33 million.
He already knew English football well. Fabregas had arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from Barcelona in 2003 and made 212 Premier League appearances for them. When he decided to leave Barcelona, Manchester City also wanted him, but Chelsea convinced him, mostly thanks to Mourinho.
Talking with talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings on YouTube, Fabregas laid out how it all happened. “Honestly, when I made up my mind to leave Barcelona, my first thought was just to go back to Arsenal. They had this buyback clause; they had two weeks to use it after I told them I was leaving. They knew about it but didn’t take it. That surprised me a little, but in the end, I had to think about my career. I was 27, at the peak of my career, and I wanted to continue performing and winning trophies. City and Chelsea were both options.
“But when Mourinho spoke to me, that was it. He showed me his plans for the team and told me about Diego Costa, Courtois, and Filipe Luis and how, with those guys, we’d win the league. He was right, by the way. We won both the Premier League and the Carling Cup.”
Fabregas wasted no time winning over Chelsea fans. On his debut at Burnley, he set up two goals, including a stunning assist for Andre Schurrle. He finished his first season at Chelsea with five goals and 24 assists, along with Premier League and League Cup medals.
Things dipped the next season. Fabregas got just 15 goal contributions, and Chelsea slipped all the way to tenth. But when Antonio Conte took charge in 2016-17, they bounced back, and Fabregas picked up another league title.
He added an FA Cup win in 2018, his second, after his earlier one with Arsenal, and left for Monaco a few months later. His last Chelsea match came in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. When he got subbed off, he couldn’t hold back tears.
Chelsea supporters still sing about him; that “Oh, Fabregas is magic...” chant sticks around. And with his name in the conversation for a possible return, maybe they haven’t seen the last of him yet.
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