Kalvin Phillips’ quiet excellence offers England something new and hopeful | Jonathan Liew


The Leeds player is that rarest of things, a midfielder who appears to prefer it when the midfield is packed to suffocation

Something strange happens as you approach Wembley Stadium. It vanishes. The sweeping white arch you’ve been fixing your gaze on for the last three miles of your journey suddenly disappears behind a forest of fancy new high-rise apartments. The vast edifice that looks like an entrance is actually a business hotel. Somehow, the closer you get to one of the world’s most famous stadiums, the less you can see of it.

For what feels like for ever, Gareth Southgate and his team have had the satnav pointed at this stadium, this game, this date. Every friendly, every training camp, every hopeful trek to the Amex and Turf Moor, has been aimed at this point.

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