In total, Sunday was just Phillips’ 29th start in club football since he left hometown team Leeds United in July 2022.
It quickly became apparent that City boss Pep Guardiola did not think he was at the level he required and his loan spells with the Hammers and Ipswich were both largely disappointing.
It had been hoped that a move back down to the Championship, where he excelled under Marcelo Bielsa for the Whites, could kickstart his career but he now faces a self-inflicted spell on the sidelines just as he looked to build momentum.
Wilder said he felt the 30-year-old’s lack of competitive football played a part in the red card.
“Once you slow it down it looks pretty bad,” he told BBC Radio Sheffield.
“Sometimes when you’ve not played a lot of football recently you can get it wrong.
“We suffer but he suffers more because he’s been outstanding, so for him to miss three games is disappointing.”
Despite this latest setback, Wilder praised the attitude Phillips has shown since joining on transfer deadline day.
“He’s such a humble boy,” he said.
“My first meeting with him I thanked him for coming here and playing a part, and he thanked me and he was the other way.
“This is the first time that we’ve seen him a bit down but he’ll get over it and we’ll put work in him and he’ll be OK.”
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