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Micah Richards says Liverpool 24-year-old deserves big credit
Micah Richards has explained that Liverpool’s Nat Phillips deserves recognition for the job he did in the most recent game.
The 24-year-old defender starred during a goalless draw in midweek at home to Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals, albeit the Reds exited the competition after a 3-1 aggregate loss.
Phillips, who has now made 15 appearances across all competitions this season, has become an important first-team player at Anfield in the past couple of months amid the squad’s injury crisis in the backline.
The English centre-back is a real powerhouse with the way he dominates in the air, making him a real throwback defender with his style of play.
He’s not the flashiest in possession and is still inexperienced, but hasn’t been overawed stepping into the XI of the Merseyside giants.
Pundit Richards says Phillips deserves applause after his Champions League display in midweek, as well as adding he’s really proving his quality.
“Nat Phillips has had an unenviable task coming into Liverpool’s team. No matter what he does, he is always going to be compared with Virgil van Dijk. That isn’t fair on a young lad and, at times, it has almost been impossible for him,” Richards wrote for the .
“So I wanted to ensure he got the credit he deserved for his display against Real Madrid. Karim Benzema is one of the world’s best strikers but Phillips kept him quiet.
“I’m not saying he’s going to be a Liverpool regular for 10 years – but he showed he can become a very good top flight defender.”
TBR’s View:
Phillips, who has been on the Liverpool books since 2016 after arriving from Bolton Wanderers, has done everything he can so far to put up his case to stay with the first team when every centre-half is fit again.
If you had told him he would be getting regular senior minutes at the start of the season, he would have never believed you.
He’s come a long way in such a short space of time considering he was out on loan in Germany’s second division in the 2019/20 campaign.