When Celtic signed Nat Phillips on loan from Liverpool, expectations were high. The club were in need of a centre-back due to a combination of injury problems at the back and Carl Starfelt's summer exit. The hope was that the Englishman would come in and make the starting spot his own. That did not happen and he spent the first half of the season as the cover option to Liam Scales and Cameron Carter-Vickers before returning to Anfield.
It remains to be seen what the future holds for Phillips at Anfield. The possibility of him remaining there for the second half of the season has not been ruled out.
In fact, Klopp recognises that it did not quite work out for Phillips at Celtic. But he does not seem to believe that quality was necessarily the reason behind that.
As reported by Liverpool's official website, Klopp said while talking about Phillips' time at Celtic:
"Nat, it didn’t work out 100 per cent at Celtic, a little bit injuries but then if a team like Celtic is in a positive moment and you are in the team you stay in the team, if [they are] not in a positive moment and you are in the team then you might go out, so that says nothing about the quality."
Klopp explains Phillips' problem at Celtic
The issue with that assessment is that Phillips never really impressed at Celtic, even when he was getting some chances. There was not one standout performance that one can think of from his time at Parkhead.
To be honest, it never felt like Phillips was the right fit for the style of football Celtic play. It might very well have been a mistake on the part of the recruitment team from the get-go and a move that was never going to work out.
Anyway, we can only wish Phillips the best of luck moving forward. On the other hand, it looks like Celtic could be looking to sign a centre-back in January as well. They have been linked with another Premier League defender recently in the form of Scott McKenna. It remains to be seen if something ends up materialising this month or not.