Phil Foden was an unused substitute as England were held to a 0-0 draw against USA on Friday evening. It’s the second consecutive World Cup group game that he’s failed to start in and he’s only amassed 19 minutes of playing time in Qatar, so Foden could be angry at the lack of opportunities.
The 22-year-old was overlooked on the bench by Gareth Southgate despite the Three Lions only managing three shots on target over the 90 minutes against USA. And when changes were made in the second half, Foden had to watch Jack Grealish, Jordan Henderson and Marcus Rashford come on in his place.
Foden has scored two goals with six assists from 19 games for England, averaging a goal contribution every 2.37 games (143.7 minutes), but Southgate doesn’t appear to trust him.
Raheem Sterling and Buyako Saka were expected to keep their place in the starting eleven after impressing in Monday’s 6-2 win over Iran, but Foden will have expected to replace one of the duo when both were substituted. He didn’t.
And where this leaves him for the Wales clash is unknown, but Foden can’t be happy with the situation. The 22-year-old has scored eight goals with three assists from 20 games for Manchester City this season, but Southgate remains unconvinced.
England didn’t create a lot against USA in his absence either, so the decision to ignore Foden was all the more baffling.
In other news, Nahuel Bustos returning early to Man City after nightmare loan move
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