View: 79% Nat Phillips may have climbed Liverpool pecking order after Slot decision v Las Palmas
Liverpool defender Nat Phillips was handed an unlikely start against Las Palmas in the final pre-season match at Anfield on Sunday [11 August].
The Reds played two matches and faced Las Palmas after beating Sevilla 4-1 earlier in the day, thanks to goals from Diogo Jota, Trey Nyoni, and a Luis Diaz brace.
Arne Slot named Phillips to start ahead of Sepp van den Berg for his second squad but insisted it was down to Phillips deserving game time rather than the Dutchman’s uncertain future at Anfield.
“That’s load management, the way we call it. And, of course, a player like Nat [Phillips], who is training with us for a long time, deserved to have some playing time as well,” he said on the club’s official website [12 August].
“So, it’s a combination of a player who has already made a lot of minutes and we don’t want to take the risk of him getting injured – as we don’t want with anyone, but with him we thought it was best for him not to start today. That had all to do with load management – and that Nat also deserved to play today.”
Nat Phillips could have a role to play at Liverpool this season
The 27-year-old became an unlikely Liverpool hero during the 2020/21 season forming a partnership with Rhys Williams and helping the Reds secure an impressive third-place finish in the Premier League.
His heroics during that campaign, where all of the club’s senior centre-backs were hit with long-term injuries, earned him cult-hero status at Anfield but he has since been on the fringes and unable to secure a permanent exit.
This summer, it is a similar case, Phillips has yet to generate any concrete interest in his signature but unlike seasons gone by, it could be a blessing in disguise for the Englishman. Van den Berg and Joe Gomez face uncertain futures at Anfield this summer [The Telegraph] and if both were to depart, it would leave Liverpool with just three senior choices at centre-back.
Phillips endured an underwhelming loan spell at Celtic for the first half of the season last term and left Scotland after eight appearances in all competitions but, he found his feet in the Championship at Cardiff and, could prove to be a capable squad option for the Reds this season.
As a traditional centre half, he ticks all the boxes averaging 1.4 tackles per match, 3.6 ball recoveries, 4.4 clearances [Sofascore], and 1.59 blocks for the top 87 percentile in the league [FBref].
His physical presence at 6ft 2in, can be a threat at both ends of the pitch, with four aerials won per 90 for the top 96 percentile and 1.53 touches in the opposition box in the 94 percentile, he scored his only goal for Cardiff from a header in the 5-2 defeat to Rotherham on the final day of the season last term [4 May].
Phillips still has much work to do on his overall play to make an impact, in this Liverpool team even as a rotational option.
Jurgen Klopp and Slot are similar in that they use their central defenders to help build up the play and beat the opposition press, a side of the game that Phillips struggles with.
Last season, he recorded a 79 per cent pass accuracy with 87 per cent accuracy in his half, lost possession 11 times in his 18 Championship appearances [Sofascore], and was in the bottom 3 percentile for progressive passes and 12 percentile for pass completion [FBref].
Virgil van Dijk and now Jarell Quansah are key components in the side with their ability to turn defence into attack with their long ball accuracy, Phillips was 42.2 per cent accurate with his long ball attempts last campaign [Fotmob] and would struggle to keep with the demands of operating as a ball-playing defender in the Premier League.
Phillips will never be expected to displace Liverpool’s senior centre-backs in Slot’s side, his putting against Las Palmas was merely an exercise in allowing interested sides to get another look at him as we approach the final weeks for the transfer window.
However, should he face another summer where a permanent Anfield exit fails to materialise, and other defenders leave, there could be a place for him in the team for the upcoming season.
His aerial threat and abilities as a traditional defender can prove useful and he has shown before how valuable he can be when called upon, crazier things have happened in football.
In other Liverpool news, the Reds eye shrewd Adrien Rabiot free transfer signing.
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