White and Phillips were team-mates at Elland Road for the whole of the 2019/20 season, with the 23-year-old on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion.
The Seagulls star, though primarily a centre-back, played in midfield and when his side locked horns with Leeds at Elland Road on 16th January, helping them to register a clean sheet in a 1-0 win.
And White revealed that Phillips had a huge role to play in him learning the tricks of the trade of a midfielder, adding that he used to do drills with the England international, playing centre midfield from the very start of his Elland Road stint on the training pitch.
White added he understood what was required of him in midfield by learning off Phillips every day, while also observing him in action on the pitch when he played centre-back behind him.
“In training, I always did my drills playing centre-mid from the very start that I went there”, White told The Athletic.
“We always did our drills together, so I’d see what he was doing and learn off him every day and then in games, playing behind him.
“So, by the time I was needed in there, I knew what I was doing.”
Phillips missed the chance to battle it out in the middle of the park with White in the Elland Road clash earlier this month owing to a suspension, but will be keen on facing him in the return fixture, pencilled in for 1st May.
