JACK GAUGHAN: Phil Foden has had to bide his time and negotiate a carefully laid out route to fulfil his potential… but the trust in Pep Guardiola has paid off and the Man City star is revelling in a new central role

Trial has to be one of the most frustrating nouns in the English football language, but it describes Phil Foden best. To get to this point, Manchester City has set the route. A few dead ends along the way, but that’s the process after all.

The Foden struggled for minutes, sat in desperation on the bench, feeling like a bygone era on Monday night as he danced to a corner of the Gtech with match ball in hand and enjoyed a second senior hat-trick after turning in a tricky away display in the advantage of the city. His goal celebration, which saw him fire a gun at the away team, came after City players branded him a ‘sniper’ during training.

Also a long time since the widespread calls for a loan – or something more permanent – ​​away from Pep Guardiola. Or when Foden was on the verge of breaking down when asked about his lack of opportunities, taking on the burden of expectation without any tangible opportunities to do so.

At the time, City sources called for perspective by pointing to two Barcelona legends as points of reference, looking at Andres Iniesta and Xavi and how many games they played in during their formative years. The numbers between Foden and those two were actually quite close, which came as a bit of a surprise.

They aren’t anymore. Brentford marked a 250th appearance for the boy they call the Stockport Iniesta. When Iniesta and Xavi turned 24, they had 226 and 225 respectively to their names. Foden’s 24th birthday isn’t until the end of May.

There are as many as 27 games left to play in City’s season. While it’s not an exact science to compare, 300-odd appearances before the start of next season is a huge leap from the heartbeat of Barcelona under Guardiola at the same point in their career.

With his number 676, Alan Oakes holds City’s record and, if we’re honest, it would take something disastrous for Foden not to eventually eclipse that.

One-club men are rare these days, but it’s hard to imagine Foden not bucking that trend. Even when everyone was after him on loan – Tottenham Hotspur among those who asked – he simply wasn’t interested.

He has learned to put his trust in the manager and it has paid off as he already has 14 major trophies in his cabinet.

The boy Txiki Begiristain told Guardiola about on his first day at work eight years ago is now being labeled by the boss as someone who could eventually take over Kevin De Bruyne’s responsibilities. Guardiola is now talking about Foden ‘leading’ the team in the future. These are not statements that the Catalan throws around without thinking.

Guardiola knows he has always influenced games in terms of goals and assists – now with 124 to his name – but in recent months Foden has been in control of games.

He is more adept at slowing down attacks, evidenced by an assist for Rodri against Burnley last week as he waited and waited for the right pass. His small touches as he surveys the scene around him resemble Ilkay Gundogan and David Silva.

Foden has revealed he sees himself ‘playing in the middle’ for both club and country

We are in the next phase of Foden’s development, the phase where it is impossible for Gareth Southgate not to place him in the middle of the pitch next to Jude Bellingham.

Foden is the most technically gifted Englishman in the Premier League and deserves a central role at the European Championship.

City might have used him as a rudimentary left winger at Brentford, but he spent most of his night inside the width of the 18-yard box. Centrally located in the city, centrally located in England.

A turning point came just before Christmas, when the concession of possession and subsequent desire to right that mistake saw Foden award Crystal Palace an injury time penalty to earn a point. Foden was desperate and Guardiola told him he had to learn.

“Since then, the two great games at the Club World Cup, he has been incredible at Everton. His impact has been more than decisive,” Guardiola said. “He’s a more mature player.”

Brentford was struck by how well informed he was about defensive tasks. And the way he shouted at Ederson for receiving a dodgy pass in a dangerous position. He doesn’t mind telling the seniors the score these days and often directs traffic in a way that De Bruyne has always done.

“I’ve been getting goals and assists lately playing more centrally, I think that’s one of the reasons,” Foden said. ‘It’s important for me to be an attacker. The team has to rely on players like me to find a solution. I want to be that player.

Foden played centrally in the absence of the injured Kevin De Bruyne (left).

‘It would help if I played in one position and learned that every game, but I am someone who adapts. I just like playing in the middle and that’s where I see myself playing the best football.’

Guardiola has consistently commented on the importance of Foden keeping his private life organized to scale the heights of some of the very best, and his son, Ronnie, staying up late watching Dad at home on Sky Sports. Perhaps he was already in bed by the time Foden was doing TV duties after winning the player of the match award for the third time since Christmas.

He’s a bit obsessed with that, Foden. In his last real glut of recognition, amid a string of goals during Covid, broadcasters were banned from presenting the individual awards. They would not be assigned to the club for months.

So he’s really devouring them now, even if they’re just fluorescent blocks. He recently joked with colleagues that he wanted to gather them before Erling Haaland returned to full fitness, but it turns out that even the great Norwegian couldn’t steal the limelight this week.