Think Larouci will go but think Phillips will only go if we bring in a new CB. Which in all fairness I think we will. Think things didn’t land right in the summer for whatever CB or CBs we were working on as a Lovren replacement and those plans were shelved till next summer. Now, with how things have gone, I expect us to bring that deal forward and complete it this winter. Think Phillips has never been of more value than he is now and he may even get a squad role at a Prem side.
Why does he need to be 5th choice?
He won’t be dislodging VVD, but providing he can stay fit this season, there is no reason he can’t be 3rd choice, especially if Matip is sold.
Phillips isn’t good enough to be third choice, surely?!
Expect we’ll keep him in January and let him go on a free in July unless we get a crazy offer and we bring in another defender
Not seen anything from him so far to suggest he can’t be pushing Gomez, so 3rd choice would not be entirely out of the question, plus he is still only 22, so has time on his side to develope further under Klopp
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Not wanting to insult Phillips but that comment clearly shows you don’t appreciate Gomez anywhere near enough. I know he’s had the odd ropey performance recently but he’s still one of the best in the league and really young for a CB. Younger than Phillips actually.
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That was not an attack at Gomez at all. Phillips has looked good in the 2 chances he’s had for us, and also had a very good spell last season at Stuttgat. He may not have the technical ability of Gomez, but not all defenders can, and he can defend which is the primary role for someone playing as a CB if I’m not mistaken.
So, I go back to my original question of why he can not be the 3rd choice, especially if Matip is sold and the end of the season?
@aussielad
As someone who watches ALL Stuttgart games I can tell you that his loan spell wasn’t ‘very good’. Would even call it good. At no point has he been first choice there.
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Keep in mind that was the second division in Germany. Phillips might well now end up a Premier League level, no nonsense, good in the air, solid, dependable and useful on the ball back up CB. But we need better than that in our first 3 choices. Seriously doubt he will ever get close to the levels Matip, Gomez, Fabinho and VvD currently are at CB. If he develops and improves more he may find himself starting for a West Ham or Aston Villa level side which would be a much much much better career than it seemed like he was going to have but we shouldn’t get carried away. He’ll be emergency squad depth whilst here and we’ll be thankful he won’t let us down too badly when used. He’s kind of our 4th choice, but in reality Fabinho is ahead of him and in certain types of games Rhys Williams will be too. His main dependable asset is his ability in the air which makes him a godsend in some very specific circumstances we’ve found ourselves in. Namely all of our CB options who are real good in the air all being out injured and facing a team in West Ham who are rather specialists at rough and ready football utilising lots of high balls. Rhys Williams was probably not ready for that yet.
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Pure pedantry from me but Phillips is 23, not 22.
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We still need a CB. Philips won’t make it, Williams is too young and Matip is made of glass. We need a top notch player around 23/4 to play alongside VVD and JG.
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And he’ll be 24 in a few months. 
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This guy?
Even without thinking about his form crisis (I think this is already the third time he has a low in Germany) I would label him a problem athlete. Off pitch issues. Going on strike to leave his club. Constantly arriving late to training (at City and Dortmund).
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Oh so “only” 6 goal contributions from a winger in 9 games. And that’s bad for him right? Sign me up!
He’s on a goal contribution every 115 minutes. Mane is world class and not seen as in a slump of form and on a goal contribution every 111 minutes.
Maybe expectations are a little too high?
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By the way when did this happen?
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Maybe there are other ways to judge a player than just looking at total goal contributions?
Mane consistently makes a difference in tough games. That’s not reflected in his overall goal contributions but is undeniable to anyone who watches our games.
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But that’s what is directly used to show how out of form he is?
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Well no, not exactly, just one factor that is mentioned by the author of the DM piece, not the sole reason given by the German media. Presumably they watch the games and don’t think he is playing well.
I watched him a bit after lockdown, he looked overweight and shite. The article quoted say his top speed has decreased which isn’t a surprise given his condition. He hasn’t scored in the BL for 11 games.
Just looking at total ‘goal contributions’ is apparently all that matters now to some, regardless of who they come against or what impact they have on the game. Pretty weird way of judging a footballer IMO, but YMMV.
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Maybe he is working on getting his price down a bit?
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I’m not saying he’s not in form I was pointing out the post and the article used a very strange way of putting across that he is out of form. You just did a much better job. But saying “look at how out of form he is hes only got …” and then giving a measure that’s actually still impressive is kind of a strange way to go about it.
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