Journalist Ben Jacobs has suggested that Liverpool could potentially sign two centre-backs in the summer, a scenario which would likely spell worrying news for Nat Phillips.
Aside from a plethora of midfielders such as Jude Bellingham and Mason Mount, the Reds have also been strongly linked with defensive reinforcements in the upcoming transfer window, with RB Leipzig’s Josko Gvardiol among the most frequently-touted names in that regard.
Levi Colwill (Football Insider) and Evan Ndicka (GIVEMESPORT) have also been namechecked with possible moves to Anfield, and the CBS Sports reporter is expecting activity on the transfer front in terms of defenders.
Jacobs told GIVEMESPORT: “I can see Liverpool signing a centre-back, perhaps even two.
“You can make an argument, even if they don’t become an instant partnership, that Liverpool need a left-sided centre-back and a right-sided centre-back, which is why I think we’re seeing a high volume of names being linked.”
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Midfield is likely to be the priority position for Liverpool in the summer transfer window, although the abundance of defenders being linked with the club hints at the firm prospect of activity on that front too.
If one or two centre-backs were to be signed during the off-season, it could well leave Phillips of the mindset that a move away from Anfield is needed.
The 25-year-old is firmly fifth-choice in the central defensive pecking order when looking at each Reds player’s game-time during the current campaign.
Virgil van Dijk is virtually an ever-present with 2,655 minutes to his name already, while Joe Gomez, Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate have all passed the 1,000-minute barrier (Transfermarkt).
Phillips’ paltry total of 232 minutes, 166 of which have come in domestic cup competitions (Transfermarkt), indicates just how peripheral he’s been in the first-team picture this season.
Should Liverpool bring in one or more centre-backs in the summer, it’d be hard to blame the ‘Bolton Baresi’ if he were to seek pastures new, having proven with his stellar performances during the 2020/21 defensive injury crisis that he’s very capable of holding his own at Premier League level.