Jamie Carragher offers essential advice to Leeds United's opponents, comparing Kalvin Phillips to former Manchester United and England star

United's England international Phillips produced a fantastic display in his usual holding midfield role in Saturday's Premier League clash at Everton in which Raphinha took the headlines as the Brazilian winger's first goal for the club gave Leeds a 1-0 victory.

But former Reds defender and now Sky Sports pundit Carragher described Phillips' display as one of the best individual performances he has seen this season and reminiscent of what former class act midfielder Scholes offered Manchester United and England.

Carragher opted to focus on Phillips' performance on Sky's Monday Night Football show and said: "He was fantastic and I have wanted to do this piece for a while really.

"The way the game is going with most teams playing 4-3-3 or as Everton played at the weekend, 3-4-3, what we are seeing now is front threes in the main rather than front twos.

"What that means is there are no no 10s in football now or a second striker to drop off and I think it is always a debate for coaches and managers who stops the opposition's holding midfield player in that situation and Everton just never got it right all day.

"Whose job is it actually to go and press him? That was something they never got right all day and I'm not sure if someone was designated as such. His passing was fantastic.

What could Everton have done? When you are at home, it is very difficult to say to your striker to drop on. That might be something you do away from home certainly.

"But when the ball went one side I thought it would be the job of maybe Richarlison to come in and almost make a box around him where you are actually trying to keep them on one side because all Phillips did all day was just switch play.

"It was like a Paul Scholes performance, that's the best way I could really describe it.

"He had absolutely acres of space, he ran the game from minute one to 90 and when the second half started I expected to see something different from Everton and almost like a plan of how you are going to stop him. But the space around him was unbelievable.

"It is a problem for coaches because of how teams play now, 4-3-3 or 3-4-3 with no no 10 in that position.

"But they had to do something to stop him, certainly in the second half."

Carragher added: "If you are coming up against Leeds United, who are brilliant as a team, not just Kalvin Phillips at the weekend, he is going to be a major part of your team talk, exactly the way that Paul Scholes was if you were playing against Manchester United.

"You had to stop Paul Scholes pulling strings in midfield and this lad, that was one of the best performances I have seen from an individual this season and if you come up against him you have got to stop him.

"Whether Allan or Doucoure maybe could have been closer or just actually sprinted at him, they had to do something

"I was disappointed that in the second half there was no sort of way of stopping him, whatever it may be, Richarlison coming over, Calvert-Lewin dropping or the midfielders getting closer.

"They had to do something and they didn't and I think that ended up being one of the reasons why they ended up losing the game."

https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/football/leeds-united/yorkshire-evening-post-launch-leeds-united-only-digital-subscription-ahead-premier-league-campaign-2967964

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Thank you Laura Collins