VIKINGS FAIL TO FAZE PHIL
Classy Foden will only get better
PHIL FODEN wasn’t even old enough to drink in a pub the last time England faced Iceland.
But for years to come he will be filling them with Three Lions fans, who will find themselves raising a glass to someone who will have become the heartbeat of Gareth Southgate’s side.
Foden was just 16 on that fateful night in Nice when England crashed out of Euro 2016 following a humbling and humiliating 2-1 defeat to Iceland.
Barely 12 months later he was inspiring his England Under-17s side to World Cup glory, marking himself down as a genuine superstar of the future.
Since then it was just a matter of when and not if Foden would make his senior debut.
It took longer than we all anticipated as he battled to establish himself in Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City team, but that time came last night in Reykjavik.
For Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling and Eric Dier this Nations League group game might have been about revenge and redemption.
But for Foden, it was all about proving he has the temperament to go with the talent and show he is comfortable on the biggest stage.
Foden started on the left side of a midfield. His preferred position is being more central but Foden just looked delighted to be out there.
He had three opponents around him when he touched the ball for the first time in the e second minute and drew a foul before combining well with Raheem Sterling.
Foden, just 20, wanted the ball and when he got it came it appeared glued to his left foot.
He is still developing the art of playing between the lines and finding space in tight areas but the longer the game went t on the more frustrated Foden became. He was trying too hard.
He threw his hands in the air when an intelligent i lli run into the box came to nothing. It was becoming one of those games.
Southgate had described Foden as a ‘beautiful player’ in the build-up but this was in serious danger of turning ugly.
Having waited so long, this wouldn’t have been how Foden had imagined his debut would go.
But he wasn’t alone in struggling – and it would be churlish to be too harsh on someone who will need time to adjust to what is a significant step up.
This wasn’t his finest hour, granted, but there will be many of those to come because Foden’s international adventure is just starting and he showed glimpses of his potential greatness with one stunn stunning diagonal ball into the path of Jadon San Sancho (left).
It was his last contribution before being substituted after 68 minutes in a change that was no reflection of his performance but more about the need for Southgate to get another striker on.
Foden is different. He relies on brains inst instead of brawn. He sees things others don’t and is in safe hands under the guidance and dl leadership d of Guardiola and Southgate. Alongside Sancho, Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford, Foden could well prove to be the brightest star of them all.