Newcastle United told to make £42m star first January signing - on one condition

Former Newcastle United striker Andy Cole has told his former club to sign Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips - but only if they plan to start him.

Phillips will consider a move away from Man City in January if his game time doesn’t improve. The 27-year-old has made just five starts since joining from Leeds United for £42million last year.

The Magpies considered a move for Phillips last summer and could reignite their interest with summer signing Sandro Tonali facing a lengthy ban amid an investigation by the Italian Prosecutor’s Office and Italian Football Federation in relation to illegal betting activity.

Cole told Betfred: “He probably would struggle for game time if you consider the players already in Newcastle United’s midfield, but if Eddie Howe does move for his signature, then surely he would be signing Kalvin for the purpose of playing him.

“Newcastle United aren’t Manchester United and they can’t afford to leave a potential £50 million player on the bench. Newcastle United should only sign him if he’s going to play games because Kalvin needs game time.

“He went from being a very dominant, and regularly chosen, player at Leeds United to being sat on the bench at Manchester City, so if this move happened, then I believe it would be a good move for Kalvin because they’re doing well in the Champions League, they play some lovely football and he would only make them stronger.”

Although Phillips has struggled for minutes at club level, he’s remained a regular for England. Speaking after the Three Lions’ 3-1 win over Italy on Tuesday, he said: “I know that I need to be playing games and competing every weekend.

“I’m going to have to make a decision on [my future] over the next months. He [Gareth Southgate] just says that for me to keep my spot I have to be playing games. That’s what I want to do. I have agreed with Gareth on that.

“I want to play football and want to play as much as possible. Over the last year and a half, I haven’t been able to do that due to injuries and [other factors]. It’s something I am going to have to think about. Hopefully, my chance does come but if it doesn’t then I will have to make other decisions as well.”