Difference between "...come in second behind..."and "...come second behind..."

Question

Who would come in second behind Donald Trump?

Does

Who would come second behind Donald Trump?

have the same meaning?

I am confused.

Is "come in" a phrasal verb in the above sentence?

or

Is "in second behind" a phrasal preposition in the above sentence?

Answer 1

Yes, come in is a phrasal verb:

2) finish a race in a specified position. "the favorite came in first"

So the best way to say this would be:

Who would come in second behind Donald Trump?

While people informally might say:

Who would come second behind Donald Trump?

this is a matter of omitting "in". In both phrases, "second" is still an adverb, and the prepositional phrase is "behind Donald Trump".