Report: Celtic Closing In On Loan Deal For Liverpool Centre Back

Celtic are closing in on a one-year loan deal for Liverpool centre-back Nat Phillips, according to The Times. The Hoops are in desperate need of defensive cover amid injuries to Carter-Vickers, Nawrocki, and Welsh, and the 26-year-old could provide just that.

Phillips initially came through at Bolton before making the move to Anfield in 2016. There, he has made 29 first-team appearances across the Premier League, Champions League, EFL Cup and FA Cup.

The imposing, six-foot-three defender has also endured a few loan spells at Bournemouth and Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart. Glasgow could well be his next temporary destination.

With the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez ahead of him in the centre-half pecking order in Merseyside, a move away suits the Englishman best. Celtic can offer him consistent minutes, and at the minute, he would likely slot in at the heart of defence alongside Gustaf Lagerbielke.

If Phillips, who has the same agent as current Celts David Turnbull and Greg Taylor, indeed signs, it will be interesting to see if he plays at Ibrox on Sunday. Few are confident of Liam Scales starting, and having someone of Phillips’ pedigree available would likely be welcomed.

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Middlesbrough set for transfer blow as Celtic closing in on signing of key target

Despite being in the race for Liverpool centre-back Nat Phillips, it looks like Boro are set to lose out to Scottish Premiership giants

After experiencing a lot of winning last season up until Middlesbrough’s disastrous play-off campaign, Michael Carrick is now finding out how tough the Championship can be.

Losing talisman Chuba Akpom to Ajax, as well as loanees Ryan Giles, Aaron Ramsey and Cameron Archer will not have helped Boro’s head coach, but his new-look side has not yet gelled together and you can tell that by the results on the board.

Boro have picked up just one point out of a possible 12 in Championship action so far this season, leaking four goals against West Brom and three against Coventry City in the process – something that has showed that it’s not just in attack where Carrick’s side are struggling.

Despite having experienced Championship heads in their backline such as Darragh Lenihan, Paddy McNair and Dael Fry, Boro have looked shaky at the back and they also lack depth, with Matt Clarke still absent following an injury-hit first year at the club.

And potentially in a bid to shore up their defence after leaking goals left, right and centre, Boro have been touted with a potential swoop for Liverpool defender Nat Phillips, who had been linked with the likes of Leeds United earlier on in the summer before they moved on to other targets.

What is the latest on Middlesbrough’s interest in Nat Phillips?

Boro’s interest in a deal for Phillips was reported by The Athletic yesterday, with Liverpool open to a loan deal or even a sale of the 26-year-old, who appears to not be in Jurgen Klopp’s plans anymore.

But whilst the Teessideres were said to have registered their interest in Phillips, it looks as though they will be set to lose out to another club for his services.

According to a report from The Times, Scottish Premiership champions Celtic are believed to be ‘closing in’ on a deal to seal Phillips’ services on loan, with Brendan Rodgers suffering from multiple injuries to his back-line in recent weeks.

Rodgers has had to dip back into the transfer market and if reports are to be believed, then Phillips will be heading north of the border to Celtic Park instead of to the North East with Boro.

Phillips will also have the chance to play UEFA Champions League football should he secure a move to the Hoops, who are in the Group Stage of Europe’s premier club competition.

What next for Middlesbrough?

Middlesbrough’s recruitment team will now have to work hard in order to land another centre-back target – providing they had others on their list.

Phillips was always going to have competition for his services as he has Premier League and European experience in a Liverpool shirt – that is despite barely featuring over the last 12 months.

That was always going to be an ambitious target for Boro, but they managed to pull off some good loan deals last season so you can understand why they fancied their chances.

But with Carrick’s current defensive options not really showing their true abilities in the early stages of the season, the club will now have to look elsewhere when it comes to a new centre-back to freshen things up.