Marsch spent his entire playing career in his home country and did manage to earn call-ups to the United States national camp, earning two international caps.
The American’s current squad at Elland Road boasts several internationals, including England star Phillips, who has managed to establish himself as a regular under Gareth Southgate.
Marsch revealed that he was a hard working defensive midfielder during his playing days but was never the best player in the national camp, even with the youth teams.
The new Leeds boss added that he was effective on the pitch as he was an intelligent player, a quality that led him to pursue a career in management, but joked that he wishes he had been half as good as Phillips is in the midfield role.
“I was on the youth national teams but I was never the best player on the national team”, Marsch told BBC Radio Leeds.
“I was always kind of the defensive midfielder who would work hard, win balls and then give it to the players who were better.
“But I was still effective with the ball and I was an intelligent player, and I think that was what led to me having interest to be a manager were those qualities I had as a player.
“I wish I was half as good as Kalvin Phillips”, he laughed.
“After your career you think about the championships and the successes, that’s obvious, but for me it was so much more about the relationships I had with the players and the coaches I was with.”
Phillips clocked up his first minutes under Marsch in Leeds’ 1-1 draw against Southampton in their latest Premier League outing and will now look for his first start when they take on Watford at the weekend, having returned to the first team fold following a spell on the sidelines.
