Cardiff City secure loan deal for Liverpool defender as Bluebirds target Championship play-off push

The 26-year-old spent the first half of the current campaign on loan at Celtic, for whom he made eight appearances in all competitions.

Phillips told Cardiff’s official website: “I think it’s a great stadium, a great city and a big club.

“I think the club has ambitions to compete and we’re in a decent position in the league. That made it an exciting move.

“We want to give it a good push for this second half of the season now. I want to play well for the team and hopefully that will come with success.”

Phillips progressed through Liverpool’s academy and has made 29 senior appearances for the club in total.

He has had previous loan spells at Bournemouth, who he helped win Premier League promotion in 2022, and Stuttgart, for whom he made 11 appearances in total during the 2019-20 season.

Cardiff are currently 14th in the Sky Bet Championship, six points adrift of the play-off places and take on at Watford on Saturday.