Nat Phillips could be poised to leave Liverpool in January after Rhys Williams was recalled from his loan spell at Championship side Blackpool.
Phillips, 25, has played just 66 minutes of Premier League football this season. He has provided cover for the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez in recent months but is keen to leave Merseyside to play more regularly.
Phillips was initially expected to stay at Liverpool until the end of the season after Van Dijk suffered a hamstring injury against Brentford earlier this month. But Williams’ return has paved the way for him to seek either a loan move or permanent transfer.
Williams, 21, has returned to Anfield after playing 17 Championship games for Blackpool this season. He featured in just one of the Tangerines’ last five games in all competitions and has left Bloomfield Road after the appointment of Mick McCarthy last Thursday.
As reported by The Athletic, Williams is not expected to complete another loan move – allowing Phillips to leave instead. Phillips has reached a stage in his career where he wants to play regularly after making just 70 professional appearances to date.
Liverpool fans will fondly remember Phillips and Williams for their defensive partnership during the 2020/21 campaign, when Van Dijk, Gomez and Matip were all ruled out with long-term injuries. The inexperienced pair helped them finish third in the table.
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That was a considerable achievement, as Liverpool had lost six consecutive home games to slip to eighth in the table. With Phillips and Williams at their heart of Klopp’s defence, they won eight of their last 10 games to qualify for the Champions League.
Liverpool are in a similar position this season. They have won just eight of their first 19 league games to sit ninth in the table – 10 points behind Manchester United in fourth and Newcastle in third. They do have a game in hand on both of those teams, though.
As Gomez, Matip and Konate are all fit at this moment in time, it is unlikely Klopp will need both Williams and Phillips to remain part of his squad. The latter has previously completed loan spells with Stuttgart and Bournemouth – winning promotions with both clubs.
Bournemouth were interested in re-signing Phillips last summer – along with Premier League rivals Southampton, Championship leaders Burnley and Portuguese giants Benfica. It is unclear which sides will try to sign him in January.
As reported by the Liverpool Echo, a number of clubs are interested in signing Phillips. Liverpool are expecting concrete offers ahead of the transfer deadline on January 31.
Speaking to Sky Sports News in December 2021, Phillips said: “I want to be playing games. It’s been tough because the competition to get in this team is fierce. The manager and I agree that the best thing for me is to play as many games as possible.”
