 Phillips training withVfB Stuttgart in 2019 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nathaniel Harry Phillips | ||
| Date of birth | (1997-03-21)21 March 1997 (age 28) | ||
| Place of birth | Bolton, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.90 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Centre-back[2] | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | West Bromwich Albion | ||
| Number | 3 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2016 | Bolton Wanderers | ||
| 2016–2019 | Liverpool | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2025 | Liverpool | 19 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | →VfB Stuttgart (loan) | 9 | (0) |
| 2020 | →VfB Stuttgart (loan) | 10 | (0) |
| 2022 | →AFC Bournemouth (loan) | 17 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | →Celtic (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2024 | →Cardiff City (loan) | 18 | (1) |
| 2024–2025 | →Derby County (loan) | 32 | (1) |
| 2025– | West Bromwich Albion | 30 | (3) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 7 February 2026 (UTC) | |||
Nathaniel Harry Phillips (born 21 March 1997) is an English professionalfootballer who plays as acentre-back forEFL Championship clubWest Bromwich Albion.
Phillips started his professional career atLiverpool, had two loan spells atVfB Stuttgart, before making his debut for Liverpool in 2020. After his Liverpool debut, he had further loan spells atAFC Bournemouth,Celtic,Cardiff City andDerby County.
Nathaniel Phillips[3] was born on 21 March 1997[4] inBolton, Greater Manchester.[5]
In 2016, Phillips leftBolton Wanderers' academy and trained atHuddersfield Town after he secured a scholarship at theUniversity of North Carolina at Charlotte.[6] Two days before his planned flight to the United States, he joinedLiverpool's academy instead.[7][8]
In the summer of 2018, Phillips started to train with Liverpool's first team and became a member ofJürgen Klopp's squad while still playing for the reserve team.[9]
In 2019, Phillips moved to German second-division clubVfB Stuttgart on loan for the season.[10][11] He made his professional debut for Stuttgart in the first round of the2019–20 DFB-Pokal, coming on as a half-time substitute forHolger Badstuber in the away match against3. Liga clubHansa Rostock.[12] Phillips made his first appearance in the2019–20 2. Bundesliga on 17 August 2019 againstFC St. Pauli.[13] On 27 December 2019, Liverpool announced that Phillips would be recalled from his loan on 1 January 2020 due to a defender injury crisis at his parent club.[14] Twelve days later, after making his first team debut for Liverpool on 5 January 2020 in anFA Cup third round match againstEverton, he was loaned back to VfB Stuttgart for the remainder of the 2019–20 season.[15][16]
On 31 October 2020, Phillips made his league debut for Liverpool, starting in a 2–1 win overWest Ham United.[17][18] On 10 March 2021, Phillips made hisChampions League debut, putting in a man of the match performance in a 2–0 win overRB Leipzig, and helping Liverpool advance to thequarter finals 4–0 on aggregate.[19]
Phillips scored his first goal for the club on 19 May 2021, scoring a headed goal and Liverpool's second of the game during a 3–0 away win overBurnley in thePremier League and claimed another man of the match award, this was his only goal for the club.[20] The following season, Phillips played in Liverpool's 2–1 win againstAC Milan at theSan Siro to complete theChampions League group stage with six wins.[21] Days later it was revealed Phillips suffered a fractured cheekbone during the game.[22] With game time limited in the 2021–22 season, Phillips admitted to being ready to leave the club in the January transfer window.[23]
On 31 January 2022, Phillips joinedAFC Bournemouth on loan until the end of the season.[24] Regarding the move, Klopp commented that "he would have loved to have kept him [at Liverpool]" and that Phillips was "incredibly reliable [and a] great figure here at the training ground."[25] He made his debut for the club in the FA Cup on 6 February in a 1–0 loss to non-league sideBoreham Wood.[26] Phillips made his league debut for the club, and his first appearance in the Championship, in a 3–1 victory againstBirmingham City on 9 February.[27]
On 31 August 2023, Phillips joinedScottish Premiership sideCeltic on loan until January 2024.[28] He made his league debut for the club in a 3–0 win againstDundee on 16 September.[29] On 4 October, Phillips made his Champions League debut for Celtic in a 2–1 loss againstLazio on 4 October.[30] After struggling to break into the first team at Celtic, he was recalled back to Liverpool in January.[31]
On 30 January 2024, Phillips joinedEFL Championship clubCardiff City, on loan for the remainder of the 2023–24 season.[32] He made his league debut for the club on 3 February in a 1–0 win againstWatford.
On 30 August 2024, Phillips joined EFL Championship clubDerby County, on loan for the remainder of the2024–25 season.[33] Derby head coachPaul Warne stated that his signing would give him "greater tactical flexibility" in team selection.[34] Phillips made his Derby debut against former loan club Cardiff City on 14 September 2024.[35] He made his first start for Derby atSunderland on 1 October 2024.[36] Phillips scored his first goal for Derby in a 1–0 win atHull City on 26 April 2025.[37] Under new head coachJohn Eustace, Phillips impressed with his performance in a central defensive trio alongsideMatt Clarke andSondre Langås as Derby managed to escape relegation toLeague One, Phillips played 33 times for Derby during his loan spell and Eustace stated a desire for the player to return for the 2025–26 season.[38]
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On 23 June 2025, Phillips signed for Championship sideWest Bromwich Albion on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee.[39][40] Nathaniel Phillips made his debut forWest Bromwich Albion againstBlackburn Rovers on 9th August 2025.[41] His first goal forWest Bromwich came on the 30th August 2025, as he scored in a 0-1 win overStoke City.[42]
Nathaniel is the son of former footballerJimmy Phillips and played under his management in theBolton Wanderers academy.[43]
Since early 2022, Phillips has been dating Molly Moorish-Gallagher, the daughter ofLisa Moorish andLiam Gallagher.[44] In May 2025, Phillips and Moorish-Gallagher announced that they were expecting their first child.[45] Their son was born in September 2025.[46]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Liverpool | 2019–20 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[c] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | |
| 2021–22 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2022–23 | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2023–24 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2024–25 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 19 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 1 | ||
| VfB Stuttgart (loan) | 2019–20 | 2. Bundesliga | 19 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 22 | 0 | |||
| Liverpool U21 | 2021–22 | — | — | — | — | 1[d] | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||
| AFC Bournemouth (loan) | 2021–22 | Championship | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | ||
| Celtic (loan) | 2023–24 | Scottish Premiership | 6 | 0 | — | — | 2[c] | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |||
| Cardiff City (loan) | 2023–24 | Championship | 18 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 18 | 1 | ||||
| Derby County (loan) | 2024–25 | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 33 | 1 | ||||
| West Bromwich Albion | 2025–26 | 30 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 3 | |||
| Career total | 141 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 160 | 6 | ||
