JURGEN Klopp admitted he “would have loved” to have kept Nat Phillips at Liverpool this month, but added he “deserved” the chance to join Cherries on loan.

Phillips was one of five players to arrive at Cherries on a hectic transfer deadline day on Monday.

The 24-year-old could make his debut against Boreham Wood in the FA Cup on Sunday.

Bolton-born Phillips joined Liverpool's academy in 2016.

After a season out on loan at VfB Stuttgart, the centre-back was suddenly thrust into action for the Reds during the 2020-21 campaign.

Following serious injuries to first-choice pair Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez, Phillips played a key role for Liverpool last season.

He made 20 appearances across both the Premier League and Champions League, even bagging a goal in a victory over Burnley.

But, with players returning to fitness, Phillips find game-time hard to come by. He has only played three times for Liverpool this season, the last of which came in a 2-1 victory against AC Milan at San Siro in December.

He has now joined Cherries on loan until the end of the season, looking to help them clinch promotion from the Championship.

Phillips was one of two young Liverpool players to head out on loan to the Championship on deadline day, with Welsh full-back Neco Williams joining league leaders Fulham.

Discussing the decision to let the pair depart, Klopp said: "It was really good for Neco and Nat especially.

"Nat deserved it so much. We would have loved to have kept him here, to be honest, with all the things that happened in the last few years here in the centre-half positions.

"Nat was incredibly reliable and a great figure here at the training ground.

"But it's really well deserved and I'm really happy for both of them."