Four young players are being touted as potential successors to Leeds United’s Kalvin Phillips.

Over the years, Leeds United have had a number of players become icons and even legends at the club. The most recent example was Kalvin Phillips, who came through the academy and really emerged as a star for the Yorkshire club. His status as a boyhood fan certainly helped, but it was his impact in the middle of the pitch that saw fans fall in love with him.

His departure in 2021, as he joined Manchester City, left a massive hole in the team, and it was no surprise to see them relegated to the Championship in their first season without him. Having someone of his nature, who has a positive impact in the side, but is also adored by the fan-base, is massive for a club and if Leeds are to return to the promised land and succeed, they’ll need to find another talisman like him.

With that said, we’ve decided to look at players currently within the team and others that they’ve been linked with to identify who have the ability and potential to become the new Phillips at Elland Road. Whether it’s young academy players breaking into the first team, new signings who have hit the ground running at Elland Road, or names the side has been linked with who would have a huge impact at the side, these are the four names that we came up with.

Ethan Ampadu

While he didn’t come from the academy and is still a fairly new signing at Elland Road having only joined Leeds this summer, Ethan Ampadu has all the makings of becoming a major icon at the club for years to come. His talent has been evident in the middle of the park and Robbie Savage has even labelled him the signing of the season so far in the Championship due to his high-level performances.

The Welshman has slotted in seamlessly with the Lilywhites, and he’s instantly become a key component to everything they do. Ampadu is still just 23 years old too and has plenty of time to continue developing. If Leeds are to make it back into the Premier League, he’ll make that step up alongside them and could be a real leader for years to come.

Sure, his spell at Sheffield United in England’s top flight wasn’t his most successful campaign yet, but he was still very young at the time and a case can be made for the fact that he just wasn’t quite ready for first team football at such a high level back then. After a few years and fine spells at Venezia, Spezia and now Leeds, he’s developed exponentially and would be a much different figure in the Premier League if he were to lead Leeds back there.

Archie Gray

For Archie Gray and his family, Leeds is really all they know. He’s the fourth member of the Gray clan to play for the club, with his father, Andy Gray, grandfather, Frank and great uncle, Eddie all donned the shirt. The Whites are in their blood and as such, he’s the perfect candidate to become the new Phillips at Elland Road.

At 17 years old, Archie is filled to the brim with talent and is already catching the attention of some top sides. He’s spent nine years with Leeds so far, joining at just eight years old and has recently broken into the first team. With six appearances so far this campaign already, he’s primed to slowly work his way into the lineup on a more consistent basis and considering how talented he already is, it seems inevitable that he’ll become a huge star in the future.

As we mentioned, though, there are some pretty big teams already taking notice of the young midfielder and similarly to Phillips, Leeds are going to have a hard job keeping ahold of him for too long. As things stand, Crystal Palace are reported to be preparing for a move for Gray in January, but if Daniel Farke can hold onto the exciting young prospect, there’s no reason why he can’t go on to have the impact that Phillips did at the team and it seems inevitable that he’ll earn a similar level of adoration from the Elland Road faithful.

Crysencio Summerville

He might not be a central midfielder, and he might not have come from Leeds academy, but Crysencio Summerville has already had a tremendous career at the Yorkshire club and considering he’s still just 21 years old, he could very well go on to become an icon at Elland Road in a similar fashion to Phillips.

The forward arrived in 2020 and after a period of time where he flirted with the outskirts of the first team, he’s now fully immersed in the lineup and has become a key figure over the last 12 months for the Lilywhites. The Dutchman has played one game shy of 50 times for Leeds so far in his career and that number should only continue to rise as he remains a major influence in the club’s attack.

Summerville has four goals in nine league appearances so far this season, a tally that already matches last year’s record and is a testament to his impressive development over the last 12 months. He’ll only get better too, and it’s almost scary to think about the level he’s still yet to hit. If he’s this good at 21 years old, just imagine how good he’ll be when he’s 25.

Matt O’Riley

Leeds almost signed Matt O’Riley in the summer from Celtic, but had a £10m bid rejected and decided not to push any further. They probably regret that decision right now as the midfielder has been tremendous for the Scottish club so far this season. His performances in both the league and, more recently, the Champions League, have been massive for Brendan Rodgers’ side and his value has skyrocketed as a result.

If the Lilywhites went back in for him in either January or the summer, they’d likely have to shell out a significant amount more than they originally intended to, but it would be absolutely worth it. In the middle of the park, he offers strength, stability and a real eye for goal. His creative influence is unmatched and there’s no doubt he’d be a huge hit with fans of the Yorkshire club if he were to join.

His impact in the side would be apparent almost immediately and with his brand of football, it would be impossible not to fall in love with him if he’s turning out every week for the club. He’s still just 22 years old as well which is wild when you think about the level of performances he’s been churning out at the highest level. His showing against Atletico Madrid will be remembered by Celtic fans for quite some time. Having signed with Celtic back in 2021 after a couple of solid seasons with MK Dons, O’Riley has gone from strength to strength with the Hoops and seemingly gets better every single year.

So far, he’s already hit the back of the net on six occasions in the league, despite appearing just nine times which is an exceptional rate for a midfielder, but a testament to the incredible form he’s found himself in since the season started back in August. He’d instantly become a key figure in all that Leeds does if he were to join the club and given a few years as a regular in the squad, he’d become as big a star for them as Phillips was during his tenure in Yorkshire.

It’s always hard to predict the future, especially in a sport as unpredictable as football. Just about anything can happen, so there’s no telling the careers that these four men will go on to have, but if everything falls into place, any single one of them could have the potential and ability to become Leeds’ next cult icon, similarly to what Phillips became during his time in Yorkshire. With that being said, it won’t be easy. Talent like the Man City man does not come around very often and considering his place as a Leeds boy and a boyhood fan of the club, he had that natural connection with the fans that can’t be bought or taught. Still, these are four exceptionally talented young footballers and if anyone is up to the task of filling that role that’s been left by Phillips since his departure in 2021, it’s one of these guys.

Check out the table below to take a closer look at the four players we think stand the best chance of becoming the next Kalvin Phillips at Leeds. Three of them are currently in the squad and one they’ve been linked with in the past and continue to be interested in. Time will only tell how it will all play ou