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Kalvin Phillips has been involved with the Manchester City first team this season but his future still lies away from the Etihad.
Pep Guardiola was discussing his options in the holding midfield role on Friday when he explained how they had shrunk in recent weeks.
"This is a small thing but we don’t have Kova now for the next time as well, so we have three holding midfielders proper and just one [fit]," he said.
Guardiola was confirming Mateo Kovacic had joined Rodri on the sidelines, with Nico Gonzalez now the only player fit and available to play that position at the base of midfield.
When City trained soon after, Kalvin Phillips might have been trying to get his manager's attention. The 29-year-old is fit and available and in the Premier League squad.
His inclusion in the list submitted to the Premier League came as a surprise, given that his squad number had been stripped away in the summer. Had he not been injured throughout the window, he would have left the club.
In September, he was even back on the pitch, playing the final seven minutes in the Carabao Cup win at Huddersfield, but that hasn't been the start of a renaissance. He was an unused substitute in the next round at Swansea and despite being in the list of players available in the top flight, he hasn't made a matchday squad all season.
That is understandable in many ways. His time at the club has been disappointing and of his 32 City appearances, only two have been starts in the Premier League. Rodri, Gonzalez and Kovacic are all better options in that position.
There is also more depth in the squad now. Even without Phillips, Guardiola had Tijjani Reijnders as a deeper midfield option on the bench at the weekend and John Stones can also play there.
But Guardiola's failure to even mention Phillips and the decision to leave him on the bench at Swansea indicate it is a matter of time until he leaves the club and that will come sooner rather than later.
"He is a player for the team, the squad. He is coming back, he trains with us, we treat him like another player. The decision of whether he plays or not belongs to me," Guardiola said ahead of that trip to South Wales.
"He is always an unbelievable guy. It is a joy to have him in the locker room."
Phillips now trains regularly with the City squad and even participates in sessions ahead of Champions League fixtures, despite not being included in the club's European squad.
However, it seems clear that there is no way back for him in terms of securing regular football. When the January window opens, finding a buyer for Phillips will again be top of City's agenda.
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