Liverpool’s Van Dijk injury blow may have blocked £10m Phillips exit

Liverpool face a sustained spell without talismanic centre-back Virgil van Dijk due to a hamstring injury that forced him off against Brentford on Monday. The Reds have been hit with the blow that the Dutchman’s problem is worse than first expected and he faces several weeks on the sidelines.

And Van Dijk’s stint out is likely to block any potential January exit for Nat Phillips, the club’s fifth-choice centre-half. Joel Matip, Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez are all fit but the latter has been used as right-back back-up for Trent Alexander-Arnold at times.

And any injury to Matip, Konate or Gomez would leave the Reds incredibly light at the back if they were to green-light Phillips’ departure in the winter window. As a result, it appears the defender will again be asked to sacrifice his personal desires to play more regularly and delay a permanent Anfield exit.

Goal had reported that the 25-year-old would even be allowed to leave on loan with a £10million option or obligation to buy at the end of the season rather than requiring a club to pay up immediately, but Van Dijk’s injury means any such deal is surely off the table for now. It is a repeat of what happened in the summer window.

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Then, an injury to Konate meant Phillips was asked to stay at the club despite the lack of minutes available. The no-nonsense centre-back started the second game of the season at home to Crystal Palace but has only featured for three minutes in the Premier League since then. He has also only started once since August, in the Carabao Cup.

Van Dijk’s lay-off is an untimely setback for Phillips, who spent the second half of last term on loan at Bournemouth. He played 17 times as the Cherries finished second in the Championship to earn promotion back to the top flight. A £15m price tag put them off a permanent move.

The campaign before, Phillips stepped up to help guide Liverpool to a third-place finish after injuries had decimated Klopp’s squad. He made a total of 20 appearances including 18 starts in the Premier League and Champions League.

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Rhys Williams was often his centre-back partner late in the season but he is currently on loan at Blackpool in the Championship at present. Sepp van den Berg is meanwhile out at Schalke, where an ankle ligament has curtailed his progress after two fruitful years with Preston.

As a result, it is Phillips – who has been linked to West Ham – who will be the understudy to the trio of Matip, Konate and Gomez while Van Dijk remains out. Phillips will hope for a long-awaited start against Wolves in the FA Cup third round on Saturday night.

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