‘Next step that I needed’ – Crystal Palace loanee Killian Phillips on Shrewsbury Town switch

Crystal Palace youngster Killian Phillips has hit the ground running in his first loan spell in English football.

The box-to-box midfielder, 20, joined League One side Shrewsbury Town on January 1 and has quickly demonstrated his ability to adapt to life lower down the pyramid.

After his debut in the FA Cup against Championship play-off hopefuls Sunderland, the 20-year-old was hailed by his new boss Steve Cotterill.

The former Bristol City and Portsmouth manager described his first minutes in a Shrewsbury shirt as “immense” and outlined how the Dublin-raised Phillips received a round of applause from his new team-mates in the dressing room following his debut.

“It’s started off very well,” Phillips told the South London Press. “Shrewsbury is a great club – I have settled in really quickly. I spoke to Rob Street (fellow Palace academy forward, who is on a season-long loan with the club) and he was telling me about how good it is and how good all the lads and the staff are. I thought it would suit me perfectly.

“Rob sold it to me. I went and watched a couple of the games that Rob played in, and they were kind of similar to the Irish league. I have played at a similar level already, so it helped me a lot.”

Phillips has gone from strength to strength in the third tier of English football. He has made 10 appearances and scored his first goal in the 3-2 win against Port Vale.

Despite this being his inaugural loan in English football, his first foray at senior level came as an 18-year-old when he was thrust into the action for Drogheda United in the League of Ireland Premier Division.

Phillips, then 19, was snapped up by Crystal Palace after 31 appearances for the Drogs and hooked up with Paddy McCarthy’s U23 side.

“It was mental, exciting and scary, all at the same time,” explained Phillips, who grew up trying to emulate the likes of Yaya Toure and Frank Lampard as a youngster.

“It is the first time I had ever left home and moved away. I left all my family and friends back at home to move to England but it was always what I wanted to do. I’m blessed that I got the opportunity to do it with Palace.

“When I first signed, it was like walking into the right home – I knew straight away that I wanted to be at Crystal Palace.”

Phillips quickly settled with the Eagles and became a key figure in McCarthy’s side.

“Paddy has been huge,” Phillips said of Roy Hodgson’s now assistant manager. “He was the one who brought me to England. Whenever I needed a chat, he would always pull me in. Even when I had a good game, he would pull me in on a Monday and always demand more from me – it’s what I needed.

“We’re similar in the way that we’re both giving 100 per cent and are all in.

“I’m sure you will see in the next couple of years or so that the players he and his assistant Powelly have developed will go on and have great careers.

“The talent in the squad and in the Palace academy is unbelievable. Paddy always says there are so many players who will go on and have great careers in football.”

Phillips was brought closer to the first team in the summer. Just six months after his arrival at Selhurst Park, he jetted off with Patrick Vieira’s first team on the pre-season tour of Singapore and Australia, starting games against Liverpool and Manchester United.

He was rewarded with his Crystal Palace debut in the EFL Cup tie against Oxford United in August, starting alongside Will Hughes and Luka Milivojevic in the 2-0 win at the Kassam Stadium.

“Making my debut for Crystal Palace was one of the best days of my life,” said Phillips. “To say Patrick Vieira gave you your debut in English football, it’s quite something.

“It was a huge moment in my career and in my life. It was a bit of a blur, but to see how the top, top Premier League players work every day, it’s very easy to take bits from their game.

“The club, myself and Paddy spoke a lot about January being perfect for me [to head out on loan].

“I had a decent pre-season and another few months of developing my game. When January came around, it made sense for me to get more first-team experience.”

Shrewsbury have only lost once in the league when Phillips has featured, with the midfielder missing recent outings after picking up an injury in the 2-2 draw with play-off-chasing Derby.

“I’m just focused on winning as many games as we can,” admitted the Republic of Ireland U21 international, who has nine League One games remaining of the season.

“How well we do as a team will reflect on your performance as well. If the team is winning, that means you’re performing well.

“It’s good when you’re playing well, but I want to get three points for Shrewsbury in every game we play.

“It was the next step I needed to take in my career. People overlook the standard in Ireland, so this step was to show people that I can play in England.”