West Ham United Remain Keen On Landing This Liverpool Defender: What Will He Add To Moyes’ Side? | OneFootball

In a recent interview with Give Me Sport, transfer insider Dean Jones stated that West Ham United remain keen on landing Liverpool defender Nathaniel Phillips. Jones said,

“I think that they’ve already touched base about the value of that deal, and I think that they need to negotiate with Liverpool further if that one’s going to have a breakthrough, but that’s still on the agenda.”

Phillips’ Recent Emergence At Merseyside

Phillips has hardly featured for the Reds during this campaign as he has often found himself behind Virgil Van Dijk, Joel Matip, Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez in the Anfield pecking order. The English centre-back has only made three appearances for the Merseyside outfit this season.

The Bolton-born talent played a more prominent role for Liverpool in the previous campaign when he was involved in 20 senior matches, scoring one goal and securing one assist in multiple competitions. Phillips proved himself to be a valuable contributor by averaging 1.3 tackles, 1.2 interceptions and 4.8 clearances per game in the 2020-21 Premier League season. He was even accurate with his ball distribution after completing 84.2% of his attempted passes in the English first division (stats via whoscored).

Liverpool’s English defender Nathaniel Phillips attends a training session at the Axa training centre in Kirkby, north of Liverpool in north-west England on September 14, 2021, on the eve of their UEFA Champions League, Group B football match against AC Milan. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)

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What Will Phillips Add To David Moyes’ Side?

Phillips can be a rock at the back when he is playing with confidence on the field. He is a solid tackler of the ball and can use his strong 1.90m frame to overpower the opposition and win some important aerial duels for his team.

The English powerhouse is often quick to spot the danger and can make a few crucial interceptions at the back. He also doesn’t take too many risks when clearing the danger inside his half.

Phillips is a tidy passer of the ball which would make him a decent fit for the Hammers this winter. The Liverpool defensive ace is good enough to offer cover for the likes of Craig Dawson and Issa Diop at the London Stadium in the second half of this campaign.

We can expect Phillips to add a lot of bite and steel to David Moyes‘ defence and could help the East London side maintain their push for a top-four spot in the Premier League this season.