Matt Phillips

Matthew Phillips (born 13 March 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for Premier League club West Bromwich Albion and the Scotland national team.

Matt Phillips
Phillips playing for West Bromwich Albion in 2017
Personal information
Full name Matthew Phillips[1]
Date of birth (1991-03-13) 13 March 1991
Place of birth Aylesbury, England[2]
Playing position(s) Winger / Striker
Club information
Current team
 West Bromwich Albion
Number 10
Youth career
1999–2008 Wycombe Wanderers
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2008–2010 Wycombe Wanderers 78 (8)
2010–2013 Blackpool 94 (12)
2011 → Sheffield United (loan) 6 (5)
2013–2016 Queens Park Rangers 90 (14)
2016– West Bromwich Albion 126 (18)
National team‡
2010 England U19 5 (2)
2011 England U20 5 (0)
2012– Scotland 16 (1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:37, 25 July 2020 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 21:57, 9 September 2019 (UTC)

Born in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, Phillips began his career at Wycombe Wanderers before a move to Blackpool, and has also had a spell on loan at Sheffield United. He has represented England at under-19 and under-20 level but has subsequently represented Scotland at senior level, qualifying through his grandparent's nationality.

Club career

Wycombe Wanderers

Phillips signed for Wycombe Wanderers at the age of eight when he was spotted playing in a five-a-side tournament. Having progressed through Wycombe's junior sides, he made his first team debut as an 82nd-minute substitute, a month after his seventeenth birthday, on 26 April 2008 in a 1–0 defeat to Notts County, the penultimate game of the 2007–08 season.[3] His first start came a week later in the 2–1 win over Bradford City at Adams Park,[4] in which he was voted man of the match by the Wycombe supporters.

After breaking into the first team during the previous season, Phillips signed his first professional contract in July 2008, a year before the end of his youth team scholarship. His first goal for the Chairboys came on 10 November 2008 in the 4–1 away win over AFC Wimbledon in the First Round of the 2008–09 FA Cup.[5] His first league goal came on 6 December in the 3–2 away defeat to Aldershot Town.[6]

Phillips went on to make a massive contribution to the Chairboys promotion from League Two in the 2008–09 season, becoming a regular on either the left or right wing, impressing with his ability to take on defenders and to cut inside. He was also won the club's two "Young Player of the Year" awards at the end of the season as well as the League Two "Apprentice of the Year".[7] Phillips was given the number 18 shirt for the 2009–10 season and continued his good form from the previous season, playing on either flank. In total, Phillips made 87 league and cup appearances for Wycombe, scoring nine goals.[8]

Blackpool

Phillips signed for Premier League club Blackpool on 31 August 2010 in an original £350,000 deal, rising to £700,000 for achieving specific criteria.[9] Manager Ian Holloway stated that he had been tracking Phillips for "a long time", saying of him, "Young Matty looked really exciting at times. He was skipping past people like they weren't there and now I've got to get him in our shape and working within it. He is definitely one for not only the long-term future but the immediate future. I am getting quite excited about what he might be able to produce."[10]

Phillips' first team debut came on 25 September in the 2–1 home defeat to Blackburn Rovers. Phillips came on as a substitute in the 84th minute, making an instant impact, scoring his first ever Premier League goal just seconds later.[11][12] After the match Ian Holloway praised Phillips saying, "I thought he was terrific. He's only 19 and he's someone who I think will have a good future. He played in a different role and smacked one in like that. Hopefully there is a lot, lot more to come from that boy because he has got some bits and pieces that would grace any level of football."[13] Of his debut and goal Phillips said: "I've dreamt of playing in the Premier League since I was a kid, so to play Premier League football is one thing, but to go out there and make a mark on it is another, so I'm delighted."[14] He made his full-debut against Aston Villa at Villa Park, a performance which led manager Ian Holloway to describe him as "at times un-markable".[15]

After a successful spell on loan at Sheffield United, Phillips scored a hat-trick in Blackpool's Boxing Day 3–1 victory at Barnsley.[16] He scored another hat-trick two weeks later, this time against Fleetwood Town in the FA Cup Third Round.[17] Later that month Blackpool rejected a bid from Cardiff City, believed to be around £800,000, for the winger.[18]

In the week before the start of the 2012–13 season Blackpool rejected a £5M bid for Phillips from newly promoted Premier League side Southampton. He then put in a transfer request, and after being left out of the opening day victory over Millwall on 18 August, he returned to action three days later, scoring the winning goal in a 2–1 home victory over Leeds United.[19][20]

Sheffied United (loan)

With first-team opportunities proving limited, Phillips agreed a months loan to Sheffield United in October 2011,[21] making his début in the Steel City Derby a few days later. Phillips had a major impact in his month spell, scoring six goals in six appearances for the South Yorkshire club before returning to Bloomfield Road.[22]

Queens Park Rangers

On 23 August 2013, Phillips signed for Queens Park Rangers on a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee reported to be £5 million[23] and was handed the number 7 shirt.[24] He made his debut for the club on 14 September, coming on as a first-half substitute for Junior Hoilett against Birmingham City. He scored his first goal for Queens Park Rangers on 3 December, netting the final goal in a 3–0 win over Bournemouth. His second goal for the club came eleven days later, when he scored the first in a 2–0 win over his former club Blackpool.[25] His third goal was an equaliser against Doncaster Rovers in a league match at Loftus Road. QPR went on to win 2–1.[26]

West Bromwich Albion

On 6 July 2016, Phillips joined Premier League side West Bromwich Albion on a four-year deal.[27] Phillips got his first league goal in a win against reigning Premier League Champions Leicester City. He finished the game with an assist and the winning goal in the 2–1 win.[28] Phillips continued his goal scoring exploits in the next game against Burnley F.C. He opened the scoring in the fourth minute and also set up a goal for Albion captain Darren Fletcher, helping the team to establish a 3–0 first half lead,[29] in a game which ended as a 4–0 win. On 31 December he scored and set up Hal Robson-Kanu's first Albion goal in a 2–1 win over Southampton.[30] He set up more goals for Chris Brunt and Gareth McAuley in a 3–1 win over Hull which took his tally up to 8 assists for the season.[31]

International career

In May 2010, after initially being named as a standby, Phillips was called into the England under-19 squad for their upcoming European Championship Elite Qualifying Round matches.[32] On 26 May he made his debut against the Republic of Ireland, coming on as a 76th-minute substitute for Jacob Mellis.[33] Two days later he made his full debut and scored his first international goal in his next game against Bosnia and Herzegovina.[34] In July 2010 Phillips was named in England's 18-man squad for the European Under-19 Championship. He scored a final-minute equaliser against France to send England through to the semi-finals of the tournament.[35]

In February 2011, Phillips made his debut for the England under-20s in a 2–1 defeat to France.[36] In June 2011, he was named in England's 21-man squad for the Under-20 World Cup.[37] He started all three of England's group stage games plus their final-16 game, a 1–0 loss to Nigeria.

In January 2012, it was suggested that Scotland manager Craig Levein had been monitoring Phillips' progress, due to his eligibility through Phillips' Scottish grandparents.[38] In February 2012, Levein duly called Phillips up to the Scotland squad to face Slovenia in a friendly;[39] however, Phillips had to withdraw after suffering a hamstring injury.[40]

Phillips finally made his Scotland debut in a 5–1 friendly loss to the United States on 26 May 2012 at EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Florida.[41] He made his next appearance for Scotland on 16 October 2012 in a World Cup qualifier, coming on as a substitute in the 79th minute in a 2–0 defeat away against Belgium.[42]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 25 July 2020[43]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Wycombe Wanderers 2007–08[44] League Two 2000001[lower-alpha 1]030
2008–09[45] League Two 37321001[lower-alpha 2]0404
2009–10[46] League One 36520101[lower-alpha 2]0405
2010–11[47] League Two 30—10—40
Total 788412030879
Blackpool 2010–11[47] Premier League 27110——281
2011–12[48] Championship 33734003[lower-alpha 3]14012
2012–13[49] Championship 3440010—354
Total 941244103110317
Sheffield United (loan) 2011–12[48] League One 65——1[lower-alpha 2]176
Queens Park Rangers 2013–14[50] Championship 213100000223
2014–15[51] Premier League 2531010—273
2015–16[52] Championship 4480010—458
Total 90142020009414
West Bromwich Albion 2016–17[53] Premier League 2741110—295
2017–18[54] Premier League 3022021—343
2018–19[55] Championship 305001000315
2019–20[56] Championship 397210000418
Total 126 18 3 1 4 1 0 0 135 19
Career total 39657136917232067
  1. Appearance in League Two play-offs
  2. Appearance in Football League Trophy
  3. Appearances in Championship play-offs

International
As of match played 20 November 2018[57]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Scotland 201220
201620
201750
201851
201920
Total161

International goals
As of match played 27 March 2018. Scotland score listed first, score column indicates score after each Phillips goal.[57]
International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competition
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
1 27 March 2018Groupama Arena, Budapest, Hungary11 Hungary1–01–0Friendly

Honours

Individual

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See also

References
  1. "Updated squads for 2017/18 Premier League confirmed". Premier League. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  2. "Aylesbury football star Phillips snubs Three Lions for Tartan Army". The Bucks Herald. 25 February 2012. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
  3. "Notts Co 1–0 Wycombe". Soccerbase. 26 April 2008. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  4. "Wycombe 2–1 Bradford". Soccerbase. 3 May 2008. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  5. "AFC Wimbledon 1–4 Wycombe". Soccerbase. 10 November 2008. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  6. "Aldershot 3–2 Wycombe". Soccerbase. 6 December 2008. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  7. EFL (17 April 2015). "Football League Awards: LFE Apprentice of the Year prizes to honour young players". Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  8. "Matt Phillips Career Stats". 8 August 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  9. "Deadline day latest". Blackpool F.C. 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 2 September 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
  10. Canavan, Steve (5 September 2010). "Ollie backs new-boy to be star". Blackpool Gazette. Archived from the original on 9 September 2010. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  11. "Brett Emerton strikes to give Blackburn injury-time win at Blackpool". The Guardian. 25 September 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
  12. "Match Report: Blackpool vs Blackburn". Blackpool F.C. 25 September 2010. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
  13. "Ollie: Potential in Phillips". Blackpool F.C. 27 September 2010. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
  14. "Phillips' debut delight". Blackpool F.C. 27 September 2010. Retrieved 28 September 2010.
  15. "Ollie: Holloway Hails Phillips". Blackpool F.C. 12 November 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
  16. "Barnsley 1 – 3 Blackpool". BBC Sport. 26 December 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2011.
  17. "Fleetwood 1 – 5 Blackpool". BBC Sport. 7 January 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  18. "Cardiff City's bid for Blackpool winger Matt Phillips rejected". BBC Sport. 23 January 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
  19. "Matt Phillips told to stay by Blackpool boss". BBC Sport. 18 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  20. "Blackpool 2–1 Leeds". 21 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  21. "Blades capture duo". Sheffield United F.C. 14 October 2011. Archived from the original on 16 January 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2011.
  22. "Matt thanks Blades for time at Lane". The Sheffield Star. 11 November 2011. Archived from the original on 7 July 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  23. "Phillips completes £5m move to QPR on four-year deal". The Daily Mail. 23 August 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  24. "QPR sign Blackpool winger for undisclosed fee". 23 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  25. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/25275170
  26. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/25512780
  27. "Albion sign Phillips". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 6 July 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  28. "Leicester City 1–2 West Bromwich Albion". BBC Sport. 6 November 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
  29. "West Bromwich Albion 4–0 Burnley". BBC Sport. 21 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  30. "Southampton 1–2 West Bromwich Albion". BBC Sport. 31 December 2016. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  31. "West Bromwich Albion 3–1 Hull City". BBC Sport. 2 January 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
  32. "Phillips Gets England Call". Wycombe Wanderers F.C. 17 May 2010. Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
  33. "Phillips Makes England Debut". Wycombe Wanderers F.C. 26 May 2010. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
  34. "Matt Scores On Full Debut". Wycombe Wanderers F.C. 28 May 2010. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2010.
  35. "England Under-19s into Euro semi". BBC Sport. 24 July 2010. Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  36. "VIDEO: U20s sunk in Shrewsbury". The FA. 9 February 2011. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  37. "World Cup squad announced". The FA. 29 June 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  38. "Scotland manager Craig Levein eyes Blackpool's Phillips". BBC Sport. 10 January 2012. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
  39. "Charlie Mulgrew and Matt Phillips named in Scotland squad". BBC Sport. 21 February 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
  40. "Phillips and Bardsley withdraw from Scotland squad". BBC Sport. 27 February 2012. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
  41. "Matt Phillips backs Scotland to recover from US defeat". BBC Sport. 28 May 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2013.
  42. "0–2 Vs Belgium in World Cup (16/10/2012)". FitbaStats. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  43. "Matt Phillips". Soccerbase. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
  44. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  45. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  46. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  47. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  48. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  49. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  50. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  51. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  52. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  53. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  54. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  55. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  56. "Games played by Matt Phillips in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  57. "Matt Phillips NFT". National Football Teams. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  58. "Arsenal striker Robin van Persie named PFA Player of the Year". BBC Sport. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2018.
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