England must build on Phil Foden’s World Cup promise with Jack Grealish tipped as ‘super sub’

Less than six minutes into England’s Euro 2020 campaign, in the blinding sun at Wembley, a bleach-blond Phil Foden picks up a scrambling Croatia defender, cuts inside on his left foot, spins the ball past goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic then watched in dismay as his shot bounced back off the base of the post.

A few inches to the right, and that strike might have launched Phil’s summer, a breakthrough on the international stage for the most exciting English player of his generation, whose footballing genius as much as his barnet ignited hopes of a Gazza. Euro ’96 style campaign.

As it was, things never worked out for the Manchester City star. He kept his place in the dismal draw with Scotland, then was left out of Group Three against the Czech Republic for fear of picking up the yellow card that would have ruled him out of the last 16 against Germany.

As it turned out, he did not feature in that match, nor in Ukraine’s quarter-final, and then only as an extra-time substitute in the semi-final against Denmark, before missing the final with a leg injury.

Raheem Sterling and Bukayo Saka instead excelled either side of Harry Kane, but it was Jack Grealish whose name drew the loudest cheers throughout the tournament and who emerged from the summer – despite relatively small contributions – with cult hero status.

The debate over how best to use Grealish dogged Gareth Southgate throughout the Euros and has dogged him ever since, but really should end now.

With Kane and Sterling certainties, there is only one place up for grabs in England’s attack – and the 27-year-old’s form at club level has paled in comparison to that of his younger City team-mate. Grealish himself checked Foden’s quality yesterday, alongside Kevin de Bruyne, as proof of why it is so hard to get a regular place in Pep Guardiola’s side.

“I feel like I can start playing a lot better,” Grealish said. “I probably haven’t played at the top of my game since I joined City at the start of last season, but I think I’ve shown some glimpses of that.”

That there has been a wider discussion of Grealish’s lack of form in recent weeks is perhaps useful for Southgate, although it would hardly be an unheard of occurrence if those who criticized the City forward’s displays chastised the Three Lions boss for that he left him out. his XI to face Italy in Milan on Friday.

Most of the former Villa star’s best performances in an England shirt have come in cameos from the bench, including the game-changing one against Germany last summer and with just games against Hansi Flick’s side and, above all, Italy, all the rest of it. for Southgate to assess his options ahead of the World Cup.

Grealish yesterday sounded like a man coming to terms with the idea that a super-sub role may once again be his in Qatar. “Obviously I’d love to play every game but it’s a team, a big team with top players everywhere so if that was my role then fine,” he said. “I’d love to be a (starter), but I also know the impact I can make off the bench.”

Despite the public clamor for Southgate’s painstaking and painstaking dissection of every team he names, it has been understated how rarely he has been able to call on Foden, the most talented footballer the country has produced since Wayne Rooney.

Two years on from his debut, Foden has just 16 caps (England played 33 games in that time). Post-Euro, in particular, England’s only real rustles came with the 22-year-old running games in a deeper role last autumn and then a major regression – England failing to score a goal from open play or win a game in four. this summer – with Foden largely sidelined by Covid.

In the face of the vitriol after those games, Southgate was reluctant to embark on an apology crusade, for all were a worthy run, but he could not resist referencing Foden’s absences. Southgate knows the playmaker’s value: he went into a major tournament relying on him, after all. If England are to succeed in Qatar, they must surely do it again.