The Reds saw themselves play out a 1-1 draw on Saturday in the Premier League against Brighton & Hove Albion, leaving Jurgen Klopp’s side joint-top of the league with Tottenham on 21 points.
I think the whole squad put in a real shift and deserved more than a point from the game – but one player in particular really helped to run the show for the Reds and has been a revelation since finding his way into the side and that, is Nat Phillips.
The 23-year-old made his second start for the Reds on Saturday and looked as though he’d been apart of the team for years. It has become evident to me that Phillips is an absolute monster in the air and he proved that against the Seagulls, winning 8 aerial duels throughout the game, the most of any player on the pitch with James Milner coming in second with 3 aerial duels won.
Who was your MOTM vs Brighton?
Nat Phillips
James Milner
Diogo Jota
Fabinho
Phillips also won the most tackles in the Liverpool side with four successful tackles, which was the third-most in the game and he was eventually awarded the man of the match award by WhoScored with a 7.57/10 match rating.
It was refreshing to see such a performance from Phillips, Liverpool have seen their first choice defensive partnership sidelined for much of the season with Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez absent for the Reds, leaving many to believe that a few defensive reinforcements will be needed ahead of the January transfer window but, Phillips is creating cause for concern as to whether those reinforcements will even be needed.
I do think that at least one central defensive signing will be made in the winter – but I don’t see this dislodging Phillips’ impressive work to get himself into the first-team and I can see him becoming a great starter alongside Virgil van Dijk who would be a great mentor for him to learn from.
What do you think Liverpool fans, did Nat Phillips impress you against Brighton? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below…