Tim Sherwood has insisted that Gareth Southgate should build his England tean around Phil Foden.
During the recent international break, Southgate said that he is reluctant to play Foden in a midfield position because he doesn’t play there for Manchester City.
This has since led to one pundit and former Premier League manager having his say on the matter.
Sherwood says Foden should be England’s main star
On a recent edition of the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast, Sherwood had this to say about Foden and Southgate’s comments about not playing him in midfield.
He said: “I was surprised by his comments. I mean, he’s obviously taken a lot of notice of what the media are saying. He needs to do his job and do it to the best. It’s his head on the block after all so he’s got to do what he believes in.
MORE MAN CITY STORIES
“For me, Phil Foden is someone with so much talent that you have to build a team around him.”
Last season saw the 23-year-old feature in numerous roles across the pitch, predominantly in wide positions but occasionally in a more central position.
This season has seen the Englishman complete the full 90 minutes in three of City’s four Premier League games, providing three assists in the process.
Having played in a midfield role at times across those four games, this shows how capable Foden is of doing a job in that position and why Southgate shouldn’t be concerned about starting him there for England.
In fact, during City’s 1-0 win over Newcastle last month, the five-time Premier League winner made seven key passes across the 90 minutes from midfield, which highlights how dangerous he can be when operating in a deeper, central role.
This also makes it easy to see why Sherwood thinks Foden should have the England team built around him.