He soon attracted the attention of higher division clubs and moved to Manchester City in November 1995 for a fee of £500,000.
[1] Upon signing Phillips, City manager Alan Ball predicted "Buster will be the first British £10 million pound player.
"[2] He struggled to establish himself at Maine Road and was loaned to Scunthorpe United in January 1998 and back to Exeter City in March 1998.
He joined Torquay United on a free transfer in July 2004,[4] becoming one of a growing band of former Plymouth players signed by Leroy Rosenior, others including Craig Taylor, Brian McGlinchey, Martin Gritton and Matthew Villis.
He failed to appear again for Torquay and in May 2007 he was forced to retire due to suffering chronic fatigue syndrome.