Napoli attempted to sign Kalvin Phillips on a season-long loan from Manchester City in the final hours of the summer transfer window, as per a new report.
The Serie A holders added Kevin De Bruyne to their star-studded ranks in June after officials at the Etihad Stadium – led by Manchester City’s newly-appointed director of football Hugo Viana – decided against renewing the 34-year-old’s contract.
De Bruyne was given a glorious reception in a farewell by the club upon his final home appearance in Manchester City colours in May, with the playmaker penning a two-year deal with Napoli to embark upon the next chapter of his illustrious career.
Napoli manager Antonio Conte is understood to have played a key role in securing the arrival of De Bruyne, who attracted strong interest and lucrative offers from the United States and Saudi Arabia after confirming he would be leaving Manchester City in the summer in a social media statement released in March.
Manchester City did their best to mitigate the notable loss of De Bruyne with the additions of Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki from AC Milan and Lyon respectively – as the club added seven new names to their first-team ranks over the course of the window.
Ilkay Gundogan was another significant departure and despite wanting to stay on and extend his return to Manchester City from Barcelona in 2024 to another season, the former Germany international decided to join Galatasaray for regular playing opportunities.
Bernardo Silva was heavily linked with a departure – as he has been in every summer window since 2020 – but the Portugal international has been allowed to stay into the final year of his current deal at the Etihad Stadium as he mulls on his future amid interest from Benfica and Saudi Arabia.
Kalvin Phillips was widely expected to leave Manchester City in the summer in the backdrop of an unsuccessful and unimpressive season-long loan at Ipswich Town, who were relegated to the EFL Championship last term to mark a short-lived return to the English top-flight.
However, an Achilles injury that kept Phillips on the sidelines in the final months of the recent campaign derailed an exit route for a player whose market value has significantly dropped since he joined Manchester City from Leeds United in 2022.
AreaNapoli are reporting that Napoli attempted to sign Phillips on a season-long loan in the final hours of the summer transfer window, having added De Bruyne to their 2024-25 Serie A winning squad in June, as relayed by Sport Witness.
It was left too little, too late for a surprise switch to Italy for Phillips, who could attract rekindled interest from Naples in January should Conte look to bolster his midfield options when midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa is expected to compete in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Juventus have also previously been linked with Phillips, who made his first appearance for Manchester City in nearly 18 months in August when he came off the bench after 82 minutes in a 2-0 win over Huddersfield in the Carabao Cup third-round.
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