Name: Phil Foden
Club: Manchester City
Date of Birth: 28 May 2000
Position: Midfielder (Central/Attacking)
Phil Foden – his career so far
By now, almost everyone knows about Manchester City’s bright young talent that is Phil Foden. The 19-year-old midfielder may not be a regular starter or, at times, even a regular squad player with the Citizens, but he is definitely among the players who are expected to be the big stars of the future.
Pep Guardiola knows it and the footballing world already knows it as well. And the most important thing to note here is that Foden is a Man City product through and through, having joined the club when he was only nine years old and already a big fan of the club. But it didn’t take long for the club officials to recognise the talent and the potential of the kid from Stockport.
After advancing through the ranks and impressing along the way, Foden signed his academy scholarship in 2016 and later that year, he would also get his first senior call-up, sitting on the bench as an unused substitute in Man City’s 1-1 draw with Celtic at the Etihad.
But that was only just the beginning of a long journey towards the first-team of the Citizens. He would also accompany the team in their US tour and would already feature in some of the games as the 2017/18 campaign kicked off. His senior debut happened against Feyenoord in the Champions League in November 2017 and a month later, he became the youngest Englishman to start in a Champions League game as he appeared in the starting XI against Shakhtar Donetsk. His Premier League debut would follow ten days later.
In total, Foden has played 29 games for Man City’s U18 squad, scoring 14 goals and assisting further seven along the way. In the nine games he’s played for the U23s, the young midfielder bagged six goals and five assists.
But even more impressively, despite being only 19 years of age, Foden can already boast with a total of 62 senior team appearances during which he scored and assisted ten goals.
Needless to say, the future certainly looks bright for one of the most talented English footballers of today.
Transfer latest
One thing is clear as day when it comes to Foden’s future at the club – he is not going anywhere and Man City are counting on the 19-year-old midfielder to become one of their most important players in the not so distant future.
For that reason, there are no transfer rumours or Manchester City news currently surrounding the young talent as he looks set to stay and develop at the Etihad. Not only that but it was recently revealed that the Citizens want to find more Fodens in their academy and are hoping to unearth more talents of his calibre soon.
Of course, that is easier said than done but it’s also quite a big testament to the youngster’s talent and the reputation he already has at City. There might be a clean-up at the Etihad in the summer if the recent transfer rumours are true but Foden is unlikely to be a part of it.
Player profile
Foden is a highly creative midfielder who’s capable of both playing the role in the deeper areas of the pitch as well as closer to the opposition’s goal. His biggest strengths lie in his incredible close control and technical ability.
He can be seen deploying pinpoint passes and also beating his man to progress the ball and carry it into the final third and towards the box. These traits were evident during his stay at Man City’s academy and also came to prominence in his senior team exploits to date.
But he also seems to be quite deadly in front of goal, having that eye to rattle the inside of the opposition’s net as well as set his teammates up for success with deadly passing.
With his rather unimposing physique and height, Foden often relies on his supreme skills on the ball to exploit and create space on the pitch. Even at such a young age, he is already showing glimpses of the brilliance that could be unearthed with more grooming and developing.