Pep Guardiola could unearth his next Phil Foden at Manchester City by giving James McAtee the chance to play in the team.
Following Kevin De Bruyne’s hamstring injury, that will keep him out of action for the next few months, the spotlight has been put on Foden to take centre-stage and be a prominent figure for City in midfield.
In addition to that, we feel that this season could give Guardiola the chance to fully unearth a player that we feel could be the next version of Foden.
McAtee could be Guardiola’s next Foden
After spending last season on loan at Sheffield United and helping the Blades make their way back to the Premier League, McAtee has been a part of Guardiola’s senior squad at City.
During his time with the Yorkshire club, the 20-year-old, who was labelled as “fantastic” by Jack Robinson back in April, scored nine goals and delivered three assists in 37 Championship appearances.
This shows how much of a useful attacking figure he can be from the midfield, something that City could do with in addition to Foden due to De Bruyne’s injury.
With Foden gradually becoming a more prominent figure in City’s first team since the 2017/18 season, this campaign could be the start of McAtee’s journey to becoming a regular figure in the team, with both players having made their way through the youth ranks at the club.
Moving forward, with the Citizens set to get more fixtures coming their way in different competitions while the Belgian is out of action, this could give Guardiola opportunities to play the 20-year-old and see if he has what it takes to perform at the level the manager wants his players to.
