Manchester City returned to winning ways with a narrow victory over Chelsea on Thursday, but Pep Guardiola will be worried about the performance of many of his players.
Eyes were on Phil Foden after he was dropped by Pep for his attitude on the training ground, but he didn’t vindicate his start at Stamford Bridge and ended up being hooked inside of an hour. His replacement Jack Grealish grabbed the match-winning assist too, so Foden can’t be feeling very good.
The 22-year-old returned from the World Cup after England’s quarter-final exit in time to feature in City’s EFL Cup win over Liverpool (December 22), but he came off the bench in the second half.
Foden was a second-half substitute in their 3-1 win over Leeds United (December 28) and 1-1 draw with Everton (December 31). Guardiola made a statement about picking his starting eleven based on body language on the training ground and many felt it was a message to Foden.
So when Foden started against Chelsea, it was a big opportunity to prove Pep was wrong for leaving him out. Sadly, he created just once chance, had zero shots, failed to whip in an accurate cross and didn’t manage a successful dribble before being taken off in the 59th minute.
Foden has amassed only 97 minutes of playing time from a possible 360 since the domestic season resumed, so things haven’t gone well for him of late.
In other news, Kalvin Phillips makes long-awaited appearance after Pep Guardiola criticism
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