| Nat Phillips | |
| Full Name: | Nathaniel Harry Phillips |
| Birth Date: | 21 March 1997 |
| Birth Place: | Bolton, England |
| Height: | 1.9m (06.2feet)[1] |
| Position: | Centre-back[2] |
| Currentclub: | Liverpool |
| Clubnumber: | 47 |
| Youthyears1: | 200?–2016 |
| Youthclubs1: | Bolton Wanderers |
| Youthyears2: | 2016–2019 |
| Youthclubs2: | Liverpool |
| Years1: | 2019– |
| Clubs1: | Liverpool |
| Caps1: | 19 |
| Goals1: | 1 |
| Years2: | 2019–2020 |
| Clubs2: | → VfB Stuttgart (loan) |
| Caps2: | 9 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2020 |
| Clubs3: | → VfB Stuttgart (loan) |
| Caps3: | 10 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
| Years4: | 2022 |
| Clubs4: | → AFC Bournemouth (loan) |
| Caps4: | 17 |
| Goals4: | 0 |
| Years5: | 2023–2024 |
| Clubs5: | → Celtic (loan) |
| Caps5: | 6 |
| Goals5: | 0 |
| Years6: | 2024 |
| Clubs6: | → Cardiff City (loan) |
| Caps6: | 18 |
| Goals6: | 1 |
| Club-Update: | 4 May 2024 (UTC) |
Nathaniel Harry Phillips (born 21 March 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Liverpool.
Nathaniel Harry Phillips[3] was born on 21 March 1997[4] in Bolton, Greater Manchester.[5]
In 2016, Phillips left Bolton Wanderers' academy and trained at Huddersfield Town after he secured a scholarship at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.[6] Two days before his planned flight to the United States, he joined Liverpool's academy instead.[7] [8]
In the summer of 2018, Phillips started to train with Liverpool's first team and became a member of Jürgen Klopp's squad while still playing for the reserve team.[9]
In 2019, Phillips moved to German second-division club VfB Stuttgart on loan for the season.[10] [11] He made his professional debut for Stuttgart in the first round of the 2019–20 DFB-Pokal, coming on as a half-time substitute for Holger Badstuber in the away match against 3. Liga club Hansa Rostock.[12] Phillips made his first appearance in the 2019–20 2. Bundesliga on 17 August 2019 against FC St. Pauli.[13] On 27 December 2019, Liverpool announced that Phillips would be recalled from his loan on 1 January 2020 due to a defender injury crisis at his parent club.[14] Twelve days later, after making his first team debut for Liverpool on 5 January 2020 in an FA Cup third round match against Everton, he was loaned back to VfB Stuttgart for the remainder of the 2019–20 season.[15] [16]
On 31 October 2020, Phillips made his league debut for Liverpool, starting in a 2–1 win over West Ham United.[17] [18] On 10 March 2021, Phillips made his Champions League debut, putting in a man of the match performance in a 2–0 win over RB Leipzig, and helping Liverpool advance to the quarter finals 4–0 on aggregate.[19]
Phillips scored his first goal for the club on 19 May 2021, scoring a headed goal and Liverpool's second of the game during a 3–0 away win over Burnley in the Premier League and claimed another man of the match award.[20] The following season, Phillips played in Liverpool's 2–1 win against AC Milan at the San Siro to complete the Champions League group stage with six wins.[21] Days later it was revealed Phillips suffered a fractured cheekbone during the game.[22] With game-time limited in the 2021-22 season, Phillips admitted to being ready to leave the club in the January transfer window.[23]
On 31 January 2022, Phillips joined AFC Bournemouth on loan until the end of the season.[24] Regarding the move, Klopp commented that "he would have loved to have kept him [at Liverpool]" and that Phillips was "incredibly reliable [and a] great figure here at the training ground."[25] He made his debut for the club in the FA Cup on 6 February in a 0–1 loss to non-league side Boreham Wood.[26] Phillips made his league debut for the club, and his first appearance in the Championship, in a 3–1 victory against Birmingham City on 9 February.[27]
On 31 August 2023, Phillips joined Celtic on loan until January 2024.[28] He made his league debut for the club in a 3–0 win against Dundee on 16 September.[29] On 4 October, Phillips made his Champions League debut for Celtic in a 1–2 loss against Lazio on 4 October.[30] After repeatedly underperforming and struggling to break into the first team at Celtic, he was recalled back to Liverpool in January.[31]
On 30 January 2024, Phillips joined EFL Championship club Cardiff City, on loan for the remainder of the 2023-24 season.[32] He made his league debut for the club on 3 February in a 1–0 win against Watford.
Nathaniel is the son of former footballer Jimmy Phillips and played under his management in the Bolton Wanderers academy.[33]
Since early 2022, Phillips has been dating Molly Moorish, the daughter of Lisa Moorish and Liam Gallagher.[34]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Liverpool | 2019–20 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | ||
| 2021–22 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |||
| 2022–23 | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 19 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 1 | |||
| VfB Stuttgart (loan) | 2019–20 | 2. Bundesliga | 19 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||||
| Liverpool U21 | 2021–22 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| AFC Bournemouth (loan) | 2021–22 | Championship | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | |||
| Celtic (loan) | 2023–24 | Scottish Premiership | 6 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | ||||
| Cardiff City (loan) | 2023–24 | Championship | 18 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 18 | 1 | |||||
| Career total | 79 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 96 | 2 | |||