Express Sport readers are divided over whether Phil Foden deserves a place in the England squad for this summer’s World Cup. Thomas Tuchel is expected to confirm the final 26-player list on Friday and questions remain over a handful of big-name stars. Foden has been a shoo-in for England at recent tournaments but his spot on the plane is currently far from certain.
He’s endured a tricky campaign at club level, making only 22 league starts for Manchester City, with Rayan Cherki often preferred to pull the strings. Foden hasn’t exactly set the world alight when given the opportunity to impress, either. He did feature for England during the last international break but was criticised by Tuchel, who wasn’t too impressed with his performance against Japan.
Afterwards, the England boss said: “I would say he was excellent in camp but, yeah, he struggles to show it on the pitch. Obviously he didn’t have a lot of minutes for City recently.
“Then he came to camp with the brightest smile and was so good in training and I thought he will just surprise us and will play with the same verve and excitement but, yeah, he struggles to have the full impact.”
Earlier this week, we asked Express Sport readers to have their say on Foden potentially missing out on the World Cup and the results were interesting to say the least.
There was almost a total split down the middle, with 50.4 per cent of voters suggesting that he should be dropped and 49.6 per cent arguing that he should make the cut.
Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Morgan Gibbs-White will also be hoping for a place in the squad, but it’s unlikely that all four will be involved at the World Cup.
It means Foden will be sweating over his place in the squad ahead of Friday’s announcement.
Guardiola has been full of praise for Foden in recent months, even though the midfielder has struggled to impose himself at City this season.
Speaking after the recent victory over Crystal Palace, Guardiola remarked: “In these types of games, [against] a low block… you need quality, the spark, the talent, the vision, something.
“It’s not in the tactical boards, it’s not in the meetings, it’s not in the videos, it’s not even the training. [Foden] receives the ball in small spaces and creates something.
“Like the good players, he can deliver and I’m really pleased for him. We want [him] close to the box because Phil close to the box is unique.”