Jordan Henderson believes Nat Phillips has become a player all Liverpool youngsters will learn from in the future. The captain labels Phillips a ‘poster boy’.
Jordan Henderson has seen an awful lot of players come and go at Liverpool since joining in 2011. Some arrived with big reputations and delivered, some didn’t live up to the hype.
But Nat Phillips is pretty unique, says Henderson. What he is, however, is a fine example to every young player at Liverpool.
The Reds’ captain talked in his programme notes ahead of Liverpool vs Southampton on how young players have broken into the first-team recently. Two stand out in that regard – Trent Alexander-Arnold and Curtis Jones.
Two local kids who worked their way up through the system and fulfilled a dream.
Phillips, as Henderson points out, is very different. And that makes him the ‘perfect’ example to every kid in the academy right now.
“There’s been countless times in this column I’ve spoken about Trent and Curtis,” says Henderson.
“But to illustrate my point this time, Nat Phillips is the perfect individual to highlight, as I’m sure Alex Inglethorpe and his staff will do to young players in the future as they take their journey through our Academy.
“What others can learn from Nat is that having the right habits and attitude at all times is so important when your chance comes.
“They aren’t like a tap that can be turned on and off when it suits – they need to be learned and ingrained. That way, when the moment comes, you are ready.”
What RTK has to say
Phillips is undoubtedly one of the best stories at the club right now. He’s a player who shouldn’t really have made it.
Usually, if a player isn’t playing regularly by the time they’re 21, you can consider them done. It’s time to move on and it’s not happening here.
For Phillips to establish himself at 23, then, is quite remarkable. This is a player who was kicking it about in Germany’s second tier last season.
Obviously, injuries have opened the door for Phillips. He wouldn’t be getting anything like the opportunities he’s had if Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip had stayed fit all season.
But as Henderson points out, you have to be ready to take such an opportunity. Phillips has done just that to say the least.
He now looks completely comfortable at Premier League level, hopefully setting himself up for a good career. Maybe that’s not at Liverpool – we’ll see what the summer holds – but Phillips has undoubtedly proven himself.
And given his age, standing, and reputation at the start of the season, that’s quite a fantastic achievement.
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