Phil Foden: Thomas Tuchel told how Man City star can become a “world-class winner” for England

Thomas Tuchel’s England squad need the “world-class winner” that Phil Foden can become if he is given the chance to play regularly in a central midfield role, Manchester City expert Steven McInerney from Esteemed Kompany has told Sports Mole.

Foden was left out of the previous three England squads and has not represented the Three Lions since March, but he has returned to the senior setup this month ahead of 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Serbia and Albania.

The playmaker’s return comes after Tuchel hailed his “immense” form for Man City, most notably excelling in a 4-1 Champions League win over Borussia Dortmund in which he marked a man-of-the-match display with two superb goals from outside the box.

Foden also impressed in Man City’s statement 3-0 Premier League victory over reigning champions Liverpool on Sunday, and McInerney is pleased to see the Citizens star finding his feet again after a challenging 2024-25 campaign.

Discussing what 45-cap Foden can offer for England during this month’s international break and potentially at next summer’s World Cup, McInerney told Sports Mole: “A lot. Phil Foden has grown up an awful lot this season.

“I think last season was a sort of chastising experience [after] the highs of the previous season, winning the league and him being the golden boy and so on, playing as this sort of second striker, [scoring] an awful lot of goals.

“I've been waiting for this transition for an awful long time”

“I'm not saying this with hindsight because I've got proof of it - I always felt that season was brilliant, but I definitely felt it was an oversimplification of what Phil Foden is. It was all about goals for him and it was great fun to watch and he scored some world-class goals, but he was involved less than he ever was weirdly, it was strange.

“He scored more, but he was just playing as a striker, he was just turning a shooting. It was great and effective, but I did feel that would sort of muddy the waters a bit for him, where he'd be defined by the goals that he scored and Phil Foden has always been so much more than that.”

McInerney believes that Man City fans are now beginning to see Foden transition into the central-midfield player that he was destined to be, and he is hopeful that the 25-year-old can reproduce his club form on the international stage.

“This is my favourite version of Phil Foden,” McInerney added. “What I've seen so far this season is what I've wanted for Phil Foden since I first saw him make his debut in the Manchester City shirt several years ago, since I saw his debut for the Under-18s as an Under-15 player when he looked like this brilliantly gifted, young No.8 stroke No.10 midfielder who would get the ball off centre-backs, progress the ball up the pitch and dictate play.

“He was slight, he was tiny, but he was obviously a midfielder, an attacking midfielder of course, but way more than just a goalscorer. I've been waiting for this transition for an awful long time. We've seen hints of it here and there, a few years back when he was a little bit deeper. We've seen him play as a left-winger, as a false nine, as a second striker, as a right-winger.

“[Against Liverpool], Phil Foden played as a midfielder. That wasn't a No.10, that wasn’t a No.6, this guy was doing everything as a No.8. That was a modern-day complete midfielder where you get forward and you defend.

“You're defending down at left-back where you're getting the ball off your full-back and you're progressing up the pitch, you're not trying to dribble past people, you're playing in little triangles, you're picking the passes out wide, you're setting the tempo, you're playing like a guy who's got several years’ experience and has won several leagues and has done it all.

“[Against Liverpool], I thought alongside [Nico] Gonzalez, alongside Bernardo Silva, [Foden] was incredibly mature. This wasn't the [Borussia Dortmund] game when he bagged two world-class goals from long range. This was a game that required his composure, that required City to dominant in midfield against a bunch of quality players.

“[Dominik] Szoboszlai’s been brilliant for Liverpool this season, [Ryan] Gravenberch was one of the breakout players last year, [Alexis] Mac Allister's a world-class performer at his very best. They didn't get a hand on City midfield, and that's an old man Bernardo Silva - reinvigorated for what it's worth - Phil Foden and Nico Gonzalez.

“I feel like England have probably been crying for that for a long time (from Foden). I think Phil can bring so much to this England side, if the team allows him."

Foden, Wharton, Anderson a “dream” midfield trio for England?

McInerney believes that six-time Premier League winner Foden has developed a level of maturity in a central-midfield role at Man City this season, and this can help him to become a “world-class winner” for England, especially if he is playing alongside “like-minded players”.

“I want to see him play alongside like-minded players. Put him on the pitch with someone like Adam Wharton, that would be my dream,” said McInerney. “Elliot Anderson, Wharton and Foden - that's a midfield with experience, composure, guile, technical ability and physicality.

How Foden can become a “world-class complete midfielder” for England

“I know you could argue about [Jude] Bellingham and there's loads more options, Declan Rice, but they're the ones I like. They're the ball progressors they're the ones that will play how the great technical sides do.

“Phil's found his maturity, but he's still capable of those goals as we saw last week. If he mixes those two sides together, you've got a genuinely world-class complete midfielder.

“I think Phil Foden, hopefully, will take that (maturity and leadership) into the England squad, because he's not this young talent anymore who can just be like ‘Oh, I'm learning from [Kevin] De Bruyne’. No, you're the man now, mate. You're the man and you have to take that experience and that quality that you've got and apply it.

“Not that he wasn't ever before, but you have to apply all those lessons learned now and find out who you are. City need Phil Foden. They just need him. Obviously he's had incredible highs, but I think now is the highest we’ve ever needed him to be. I think he's showing it.

“I think if England can get that out of Phil Foden too, they get a truly world-class player and more than that, they get a world-class winner, and I think England need that.”

Meanwhile, McInerney has shared his thoughts on why Foden's Man City teammate Nico O'Reilly "should be a lock" in Tuchel's England team at left-back.

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