Foden can Phil Silva’s big boots at the Blues
PEP Guardiola believes Phil Foden will eventually evolve into another David Silva, the man who makes City tick in the final third of the pitch.
The 21-year-old England star gave further evidence of his growing maturity by taking on the Kevin de Bruyne role in the vital 4-0 win at Leeds, and provided two assists and had a crucial part in another goal.
But with De Bruyne rested ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League semifinal second leg at Real Madrid, Foden is expected to revert to a wide role at the Bernabeu.
The England international showed another string to his formidable bow by creating two goals from set-pieces to end Leeds’ stiff resistance – a superb free-kick onto Rodri’s head for the opener and a far-post corner that Ruben Dias nodded back for Nathan Ake to make it 2-0.
Foden then conjured a slick pass to free Gabriel Jesus for goal number three to end any doubts about the result, another glimpse of a future where he orchestrates play from a central role.
De Bruyne is the main man in that role at present, while Bernardo Silva is usually trusted to play it when the Belgian is not in the team.
But with De Bruyne approaching his 31st birthday, Foden is earmarked as the fulcrum of City’s future attack – he has long been seen as the natural successor to David Silva. And Guardiola outlined one big addition to his game that the lad from Stockport needs to make in order to emulate the Spaniards’ brilliant 10-year contribution to the City cause.
“I think he can play in all five positions up front - wingers on both sides, striker and attacking midfielder in the pockets. He can play all of them,” said City boss Guardiola.
“With time he will be more capable of playing in the positions in the middle.
“He still does all actions at high speed and sometimes you have to have some pausa. Now he has the energy of youth and maybe winger suits him better a little bit right now.”
The ‘pausa’ is a Spanish term for the ability of slowing down or stopping the game to draw an opponent before instantly speeding it up again, a skill of which Silva was the master.
And Guardiola thinks Foden will start to use it more as he matures, having marked him down as a natural attacking central midfielder from the moment he saw him as a kid in the academy.
“I’m pretty sure (he will end up central) because when I started to see him in the academy at 15 or 16 he played the position of Kevin (de Bruyne) and he played really good,” said the manager. “All the actions are so, so quick.
“I always talk about David Silva, sometimes he slowed the rhythm to increase the rhythm and Phil’s rhythm is always high.
“It’s good because it’s aggressive and
we need it, but sometimes he needs a little more in that position - that is only a question of time, not that he cannot do it because he can do it without a problem.”
Guardiola handed Foden the burden of being the main playmaker in the game, but the City boss said he has no concerns about putting the onus on the youngster,adding: “Phil has responsibility since day one, he has performed on the biggest stages and important scenarios in important games.
“He loves to play and you see what he does in bad moments. Phil is not a problem.”
With De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez both held in reserve, Foden was charged with being the main set-piece deliverer, and he fulfilled that with spectacular results, but Guardiola says De Bruyne will assume the role again
when he returns at the Bernabeu on Wednesday.
“When Kevin is there, Kevin is the taker,” he said. “But it’s good for Phil. He is so young, hopefully he can be here for the rest of his life and is a guy with an out-swinger or ins-winger with a left foot. Riyad is good too. What is important is the taker. Put the ball in the positions where it can be dangerous.”
City have become a real menace from set-pieces this season, and the manager puts that down to the work coach Carlos Vicens has done, with his support team of analyst.
“We are incredibly delighted with the job Carlos Vicens has done,” he said.
“He has made it so simple and clear. The secret of set-pieces is about the taker. With a good taker, you have a chance. You can make movements to the near post or far post but it doesn’t matter because the taker is the most important thing. Phil, especially in the first goal, was fantastic at putting the ball in the right position and with the runners – Nathan, Rodri, Ayme (Laporte), Ruben – we have weapons.”
DEAD BALLS KILL OFF LEEDS
PEP Guardiola insists his football is simple and one of City’s most magnificent improvements this season has been their revolution from set-pieces.
Once their weakest part of the game, they are now leading the league in that department.
A trip to Leeds had the hallmarks of being a banana skin in the race for silverware, and Liverpool watched on hopefully after navigating their way past Newcastle in the early kick-off on Saturday to briefly go top of the table.
There was nothing pretty about the reception the champions got at Elland Road, and they were made to suffer for large chunks of the first half.
That they were able to escape with the three points was largely due to their superiority from dead balls. They attacked them better than Leeds defended them, and they defended them better than Leeds attacked them, with the first two goals in the match coming from set-pieces.
Their 18 goals from set-pieces is two more than second-best Liverpool have managed, while they have conceded just one at the other end in those situations - three fewer than any other side.
Football really can be a very simple game.
HOW DEEP IS YOUR SQUAD?
KEVIN de Bruyne and Bernardo Silva have been integral to City’s success this season, so much so that at least one of them has started every league game following the opening-day loss to Spurs.
Liverpool have strengthened their squad to the point where they can now boast deeper reserves than City, as shown in their FA Cup semi-final.
Leaving his two key midfielders out for such a must-win game at Leeds was another gamble from a manager that opted to leave out essential players at Wembley, and with the result on Saturday, it can be said to be justified.
Bernardo and De Bruyne will now both have fresh legs to take on Real Madrid on Wednesday.
However, the fact City were outgunned in midfield for much of the game against a side struggling against relegation may warn against the Blues starting too many more matches without their best players.
RODRI POPS UP AGAIN
ONE of the reasons De Bruyne and Bernardo being benched didn’t affect the scoreline was because the other key midfielder popped up with another timely intervention.
Having already blocked an effort that would have won Liverpool the game in October, then scored a dramatic late winner at Arsenal on New Year’s Day, Rodri popped up with his latest significant contribution to this title charge by heading in Foden’s early freekick. An excellent season for the Spanish midfielder got even better at Leeds.
CITY COMMITMENT SHINES THROUGH TO HELP GOAL DIFFERENCE
THE sight of two City players hurling themselves in the way to stop Leeds getting a goal back in the 89th minute summed up the commitment that everyone showed to get the result in what really was a collective effort.
Aymeric Laporte was at the forefront of it, showing bravery to carry on (even if it looked like he perhaps shouldn’t have done) after a nasty head collision and making sure nothing got past him all day.
Right up to the last minutes, when Oleksandr Zinchenko and Joao Cancelo produced blocks to stop goalbound shots and then Ederson saved well, the Blues were absolutely determined not to concede a goal.
That goal difference may well come in handy come the end of the season.