He is a coach at Leicester these days and says one day he may be manager of Sunderland.
Kevin Phillips: "You can never say never in football and who knows one day I may even get to manage Sunderland!
"If I am being honest, I would say I can see another season of struggle for Sunderland this campaign.
"I have said the same about two of my other former clubs in Aston Villa and West Brom.
"I sincerely hope this is not the case as I have a huge soft spot for Sunderland and probably the most out of my former clubs and for good reason.
"That said, with my selfish head on, these three teams struggling would mean my current employers, Leicester, have a good chance of staying in the division.
"But on the evidence so far and the signings Sunderland have made, I can see it sadly being a long old season for the club."
Elsewhere, the Mackems got one over Lee Clark last night as they won 3-0 in Clarky's own back yard, knocking Birmingham out of the League Cup.
Lee Clark: “It’s not a fair reflection of the game. We played well and the scoreline doesn’t do my players justice.
"Ultimately the first goal goes in and the players start chasing for an equaliser and with the quality of Premier League players when the game becomes stretched they pick you off.
"We were more than a match for a very good team."
Chelsea v Bolton
Arsenal v Southampton
West Brom v Hull
Crystal Palace v Newcastle
Leyton Orient v Sheff Utd
Cardiff v Bournemouth
Sunderland v Stoke
Derby v Reading
Liverpool v Middlesbrough
MK Dons v Bradford
Man City v Sheff Wed
Burton v Brighton
Swansea v Everton
Shrewsbury v Norwich
Fulham v Doncaster
Tottenham v Nottm Forest
Ties to be played on September 23-24.