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Gareth Southgate claimed that Phil Foden gave a glimpse of the young talent who “will be fabulous for England for years to come” with an exhibition that achieved international redemption against Iceland.
The Manchester City midfielder lit up the Nations League dead rubber at Wembley with two graceful goals plus an assist for Declan Rice’s first goal. They were the duo’s first goals at the senior international level and, with Mason Mount also on the record, England had three scorers aged 21 and under in the same game for the first time since February 1883.
Foden’s night was in stark contrast to his England debut against Iceland in September, when he was sent home for violating coronavirus rules along with Mason Greenwood by inviting women to his hotel room. And Southgate admitted that the 20-year-old’s impressive return to the starting lineup is due as much to character as to his undoubted ability.
The England manager explained: “I am very happy for him and his family. Living the experience he had in September was really difficult for a young man. We all make mistakes. It was a difficult situation to be in. You’re walking back through the door and looking at everyone’s faces and you know the last time you saw them was complicated. I think it took a few days for him to settle into the camp and start smiling a little more and relaxing a little more. We know what it is capable of. It is one of the few that will be very exciting in the coming years for England.
Foden scored twice after Iceland was reduced to 10 men in the 54th minute to give the scoreboard a more accurate reflection of England’s superiority. He praised Southgate for staying by his side after the September high-profile rape.
“That was one of the most difficult moments of my life,” said the young man from City. That’s when you need the trust of your managers. I respect Gareth very much for trusting me and I am happy to pay him the goals. He was determined to go back and do the best he could. I was a little nervous at first, but I got used to it. “
Southgate insisted that England had to learn from a difficult autumn in which “we created dramas for ourselves off the pitch and we were nowhere near having our best players available. We have to reflect on why this has been the case ”.
But the England manager was effusive in praising not only Foden but also Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Mount and captain Harry Kane, to whom he credited maintaining high standards in training after Sunday’s loss to Belgium. .
He added: “We are very aware of the generation of young players who we think will be great for England in the years to come. It was great for the audience to take a look at that. They were surrounded by excellent professionals. It would have been easy for us not to have a good performance tonight, there were all possible excuses for not doing well, but that was not the mentality of the elders and I have to say that the captain led that from the beginning.
