Transfer News: Bournemouth in talks with Liverpool to permanently sign on-loan star Nat Phillips
According to the Express, Bournemouth are currently in talks with Liverpool as they aim to sign Liverpool defender and on-loan star, Nat Phillips, this summer.
The Cherries are also open to another season-long loan deal but a permanent move could cost them £8million. This comes after they already paid £1.5million to temporarily sign the defender in January, and a recent £250,000 they paid to the Reds after Phillips helped them win promotion.
The Englishman was in the team for the game against Millwall recently, where a 1-0 win meant Bournemouth secured automatic promotion to the PL alongside Fulham. Speaking recently, Phillips also addressed the idea of moving to the south coast.
“I want to continue playing regularly, week in, week out. Ideally in the Premier League. So we’ll see what happens in the summer.”
Phillips was a regular for us last season when our senior centre-backs were out injured. Alongside Rhys Williams, he guided the Reds to a third-place finish in the PL. But those minutes were bound to reduce once the big boys were back.
Phillips to Bournemouth?
Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip, and Ibrahima Konate split gametime amongst them while a centre-back as talented as Joe Gomez has to settle for a place on the bench on a consistent basis. Amidst a situation like this, it is very hard to see where Phillips fits in.
He clearly wants more playing time, and ‘ideally’ in the Premier League. With the Cherries now back in the big time, it remains to be seen if he would be open to playing top-flight football with them moving forward.
Liverpool, in that regard, would be wise to offload a player they frankly won’t be needing- unless, of course, there is another injury crisis at the club. But with Konate now filling the void that Dejan Lovren left after his move to Zenit, we are well guarded in that aspect as well.
It would be what’s best for his career as well. At 25, it’s not like he is an up and coming prospect anymore. He would need playing time at this age to reach his potential and make a name for himself.
More Liverpool News
- Transfer News: Sadio Mane to stay at Liverpool if he gets a bumper new contract
- Transfer News: Steven Gerrard wants to sign Liverpool star Joe Gomez at Aston Villa this summer
- Jurgen Klopp gives seal of approval to Liverpool pursuing Aberdeen right-back Calvin Ramsay
No matter what PL club you may play for, the global reach of the English top-flight is there for all to see. A move to Bournemouth may be a step down in terms of the stature of the club, but if it means regular football in one of the most-watched football leagues in the world, then a move surely makes sense.
