New Delhi, Jun 17 (IANS): Following England's triumph in their Euro 2024 campaign opener, former defender Micah Richards and ex-Spanish midfieder Cesc Fabregas engaged in a discussion regarding the optimal utilisation of Phil Foden's talent, given his challenges in impacting the Three Lions' narrow 1-0 victory over Serbia in Group C.
Fabregas stated that a player as talented as Foden should not be inconsistent during national team's matches. He suggested that England needs to figure out how to utilise Foden's performance, especially after the Premier League Player of the Season from last year had a disappointing game.
"The big talking point for me tonight was Phil Foden. I think the first 20 minutes he got into some really good positions. We need to find a way to get the best out of him. He wasn't involved.
"At Manchester City, we obviously know it's choreographed with the system and the movements and all those sorts of things. But it makes me sad when I see a player of this quality just in and out of games," said Richards on BBC’s post-game show.
Foden has been absolutely class in his time as a Manchester City player. He scored 19 goals and provided eight assists during the recent Premier League season but has never stepped up in an England shirt. He has scored only four goals with the national team.
"I love that you try to defend him, seriously, I get your point totally. But a player of this class, of this level, of this talent, for me sometimes, he doesn't even need to be told by the coach what he needs to do. He needs to want it more than the rest and for me today, it showed that Jude is a little bit above him in this regard," said Fabregas.
Bukayo Saka had a solid first half as the Arsenal forward provided the assist for the Jude Bellingham goal marking his 27th assist in 24 games in a Three Lions shirt. The panel went on to discuss the performance of Trent Alexander-Arnold, whose inclusion in the starting XI was questioned as he filled in a midfielder role rather than the right-back role he has been seen at in the past.
"He (Trent) had a moment where he was superb and maybe a few things came a little too easy with the ball [like when a heavy touch allowed a Serbia chance] but overall he reacted well and showed good personality. The more he plays there, the better he will become. I'm not worried about that," added Fabregas.