“Unbelievable” | Phillips says moving to Hammers was predestined The Method of West Ham

Kalvin Phillips says that everything was pointing him towards joining West Ham, and he believes it was a move that was always going to happen.

In West Ham’s history, there are very few players that have been unanimously loved from the moment the signing was announced. The fact that Kalvin Phillips is one of them is a huge testament to his character, work ethic and ability.

The loanee recognised how important the January window has been to the Hammers in recent years and he hopes to be just as impactful as some of the previous signings. “Hopefully I can follow in some of the other players’ footsteps and be a successful January signing,” he told the Iron Cast podcast. “Jesse did brilliantly when he was here, and Jarrod and Tomáš are huge for the Club now, so they’re not easy acts to follow but I’ll do my best!”

Obviously, Phillips is ecstatic to have signed for the East London side, but he believes that the move was always destined to happen eventually.

“I’m delighted to get it over the dotted line. I was over in Abu Dhabi on a warm-weather training camp with City, and all I could think about was getting the loan sorted. Honestly, if City hadn’t come in for me back in the summer of 2022 I think I could’ve come to West Ham before. The manager has told me he’s been after me for two years or so, so it’s almost like it’s inevitable that I’m finally here. I just can’t wait to get going now.”

Thankfully, the midfielder did not try to hide the fact that a part of him joining the Irons is down to wanting to make the England squad at the Euros this year but, even then, he is evidently excited about the project that David Moyes is building at the London Stadium.

“I’ve spoken to Dec quite a bit about West Ham over time, and he’s always said amazing things. I also get on well with Jarrod [Bowen], Ingsy [Danny Ings] and Prowsey [James Ward-Prowse] – I’ve not had chance to speak to them yet, but I’ll look forward to seeing them in training!”

“Obviously Euro 2024 is coming up, which is very exciting. A lot of the players are doing amazingly at the moment – you look at people like Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham smashing it in Europe, for example – and there are a lot of good signs. Hopefully I can continue to play a part going into the summer.”

“I’m just so excited to get going. I’ve watched a lot of West Ham over the years, I saw the celebrations from Prague last summer and I’ve played at London Stadium several times, so I know the quality of the environment I’m coming into.”