Kalvin Phillips has expressed his delight at making his return from injury during the 2-0 Carabao Cup third round victory over Chelsea.

The Englishman got his first minutes shortly after half time at the Etihad Stadium, with his last appearance coming in the UEFA Champions League victory over Borussia Dortmund in September after undergoing a shoulder operation.

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Within eight minutes of his introduction from the bench, Pep Guardiola‘s side struck twice through Riyad Mahrez and Julian Alvarez to cruise into the fourth round of the competition.

Phillips was overjoyed to make his return to the pitch. He said:

“It was an amazing feeling. There’s been doubt with my shoulder and injury. It’s been a long time but I’m glad to be back out there and playing with the lads.

“Without playing football for a while it’s going to be nerve wracking when you first step on the pitch, especially one of my first appearances for the Club.

“It felt good and it made it easier with the two goals going in straight away.”

The midfielder suffered a recurrence of a shoulder injury in our friendly against Barcelona at Camp Nou in August.

Subsequently, the 26-year-old missed our 3-0 Premier League win over Wolves and after facing Dortmund, went under the knife to solve the issue.

He admitted it was a tough time but remained positive and worked hard to get himself fit.

“It was difficult. I think when I first found out I needed the operation everything went out of the window. I didn’t feel great about the situation.

“A couple of days after I made sure i worked hard. I was always positive and I’m back fit now.

“I think a couple days after the operation my thought was to do everything to get back fit. I was doing more sessions than I would have done. I feel better now.”

England manager Gareth Southgate will select his 26-man squad for the World Cup tomorrow and Phillips is remaining optimistic about being selected for the tournament.

“I’ve not so much [spoken] with Gareth [Southgate], I’ve spoke with the staff and physios,” he revealed.

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“Anything can happen. I don’t want to miss it. But with the amount of game time I’ve had there’s always that doubt.

“My injuries and stuff, I’ve not really been playing 100% with my shoulder but I’ve got that sorted now so I’m optimistic and it’s put me in good stead.”