Kalvin Phillips has revealed that Ronaldo Vieira’s exit from Leeds United left him devastated.

Leeds opted to cut ties with Vieira in the summer of 2018, despite Marcelo Bielsa’s arrival at Elland Road and a planned assault on automatic promotion.

Vieira had broken onto the scene in 2016 and was a regular under Garry Monk, Thomas Christiansen and Paul Heckingbottom, managing 71 appearances for the Whites.

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Nevertheless, the Whites cashed in on midfielder, whose destination was Serie A and Sampdoria.

For Phillips, he and Vieira had both come through Leeds’ academy and the 24-year-old has admitted the now-departed midfielder’s exit impacted him. 

“I was devastated, to be fair,” he told Forza Football Academy in a Q&A on Instagram.

“I was there when Ronaldo was coming up through the 18s and the 23s. 

“He took the team by storm. For such a young kid to be able to play as well as he did, when he was here he was massive for us. 

“He opened your eyes and you thought ‘we’ve got a very good, young player’.

“I was gutted when he left, but I still keep in touch with him. We talk on a day-to-day basis.”

Vieira, 21, has made 38 appearances for Sampdoria since departing Elland Road, with his reputation slowly growing in Italy.

For Phillips, his reputation in England is motoring nicely and he’s thriving in a Leeds side chasing the Premier League under Marcelo Bielsa.

The Whites sit top of the Championship table and nine games away from promotion.

The Verdict

Phillips and Vieira were close during their time at Elland Road, with two academy boys thriving in the first-team a sight a lot of Whites supporters could get on board with.

Both featured in the midfield and often lined up together before the days of 4-1-4-1.

A close relationship on and off the field will have meant it was tough when the sale happened, but with hindsight, it has been good for both.

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