With goalkeepers Jak Alnwick and Ryan Allsop among a raft of summer signings made by Cardiff City, it was not a huge surprise when the Championship club opted to offload Dillon Phillips in July – sending him on a season-long loan to Belgian side KV Oostende. 

The 27-year-old joined Cardiff from Charlton Athletic in the summer of 2020 and had to bide his time but took his opportunity midway through his debut campaign in the Welsh capital.

However, a run of defeats early in 2021/22 saw him lose his place and though he regained it for the final seven games of the season, it seems he was deemed excess to requirements by then-manager Steve Morison in the summer.

We've examined how Phillips has fared in Belgium so far and assessed whether he has a future at Cardiff...

How he has done so far at KV Oostende

Phillips began the season as second choice at the Belgian club behind Guillaume Hubert but was handed his chance when the 28-year-old was dropped after the 6-1 defeat to Union SG in October.

With Oostende battling in and above the relegation zone in the Jupiler League, Hubert had conceded 22 goals in 12 games and it seems manager Yves Vanderhaeghe was hopeful that the Cardiff loanee could help stem the flow.

That's not yet been the case as Phillips has conceded 15 goals in his first five league games for the club – including a 6-0 defeat against KVC Westerlo just before the World Cup break.

According to Wyscout, those 15 goals have come from 29 shots on target and Phillips has conceded 3.92 more goals than expected by the expected goals (xCG) model.

That's a poor record but it's not all been bad as the English shot-stopper has helped Oostende to beat fellow relegation-battlers KV Kortrijk and Zulte Waregem as well as aiding his side get past Thes Sport in the sixth round of the Belgian Cup.

It remains to be seen whether Phillips will keep his place in the Oostende side when the Jupiler League gets back underway in late December.

Has Dillon Phillips got a future at Cardiff City?

Things haven't panned out brilliantly for Phillips in Belgium so far but developments at Cardiff could be good news for his narrow hopes of re-establishing himself at the Championship club.

Morison, the manager that sent him out on loan, has been sacked and though his replacement Mark Hudson was an internal appointment, a change in the dugout can help players fight their way back in from the cold.

That said, Phillips' contract at Cardiff expires in the summer and the fact that they included an option to buy in his loan deal to Oostende suggests that his race is run in the Welsh capital.