Liverpool defender Nat Phillips is set to sign for Stuttgart on loan for the rest of the season.
According to GOAL journalist Neil Jones, Phillips will return to Stuttgart, after being recalled by Liverpool this month to play against Everton in the FA Cup.
Twitter: #LFC defender Nat Phillips heading back to Stuttgart on loan this week, having returned for Everton game (and to be on bench vs Spurs). (@neiljonesgoal)
Phillips spent the first-half of the season on loan to Stuttgart, but Jurgen Klopp drafted him back into the squad to start against the Toffees following a raft of defensive injuries.
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He came back to do a specific job – play in the FA Cup – and Liverpool won the game and kept a clean sheet. Joe Gomez and Virgil Van Dijk are currently the first-choice defensive pair, with Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip currently out, and Liverpool are clearly happy with their options and ready to send him back to Germany. If they wanted to keep him, they would not be sanctioning a return to Stuttgart.
It gave Phillips the chance to make his senior debut for Liverpool and experience a derby game, which could have been a huge learning experience for the centre-back. He will now be able to take that back to Germany and continue the season with Stuttgart, hopefully impressing in the final months of the season before returning to Liverpool for pre-season ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.
