Kalvin Phillips and Leeds United continue Premier League learning curve with Burnley next

There is no-one it could have or would have hurt more to be substituted during the half-time interval at Old Trafford than Kalvin Phillips.

As a local boy the midfielder knows how much a game against Manchester United means to the people of West Yorkshire.

For the England international, Leeds United’s 6-2 defeat to the Red Devils over the Pennines will add to the steep learning curve that he and the club as a whole are currently on.

Questions were asked of Marcelo Bielsa and his outfit in the aftermath of defeat, with prods of naivety made in their general direction.

Some posed questions over the Whites style, others wondered if Bielsa would changed.

The Argentine has since responded – it is a categorical no. It is one way and one way only for Leeds. Plan A.

It is easy to forget that amongst all of the outside noise that Leeds are just 14 games into their first Premier League campaign for 16 years.

Most players, not all, are plying their trade in the top flight for the very first time and being led by a coach who, for all his experience, has never managed in the division.

Bielsa is a big believer in taking lessons from each game, and once the dissenting voices had quietened from a chastening afternoon in Lancashire the analysis quietly began.

Phillips has suffered worse humiliation before, having been taken off after just 20 minutes twice in the Argentine’s first season at the club.

The 25-year-old, though, will have been left dwelling on the 45 minutes of madness he took part in at Old Trafford more than any other he has played in recent seasons.

It has been a whirlwind few months for the Thorp Arch academy graduate, who received a Three Lions call-up even before making his Premier League bow in September.

There have been good days and bad, with last Sunday filed under the latter, but he knows more than anyone about taking the lessons from the difficult moments when they arise.

He is, after all, still learning and processing all of the information gathered from each passing minute in the Premier League, having made the leap up in quality just like everyone else at Elland Road.

“The standard is obviously a lot better, compared to the Championship it isn’t quite as frantic,” Phillips said recently.

“Teams often sit back in the Premier League and will give you a little bit of time on the ball, which for us as a team it works better.

“Even me individually it’s better because I love time on the ball to work passes and find my team-mates. I think that’s the one difference from the Championship to the Premier League.

“Once it gets into the final third it steps up another level. Going to Liverpool in the first game, it’s not going to get much harder than the front three they’ve got and how they pass the ball.