Jamie Carragher insists ‘special talent’ Phil Foden must play for England

Jamie Carragher has questioned Gareth Southgate’s ‘mind-boggling’ decision to leave Phil Foden on the bench in England’s disappointing goalless draw against the US on Friday.

After hammering Iran 6-2 on Monday, Southgate opted to go with an unchanged line-up, meaning Foden were listed among the substitutes again.

It soon became clear that this was not going to be a one-sided affair, but when the England boss turned to his substitutes in the second half, he put in Jack Grealish and Marcus Rashford to replace Raheem Sterling and Bukayo Saka, leaving Foden behind. watching from the sidelines.

Phil Foden sat on the bench in England’s draw against the US on Friday night

Gareth Southgate turned to Jack Grealish (C) and Marcus Rashford (R) for Foden

Jamie Carragher finds it ‘amazing’ that Foden did not come off the bench after the break

Foden has played just 19 minutes in the tournament so far after coming on as a late substitute against Iran, but Carragher believes this needs to change and has admitted to being surprised the Manchester City star has been used so sparingly.

“I was one of those hoping Gareth Southgate would turn to the Manchester City youngster. It was astonishing that he remained on the bench when the game cried out for his creativity,” Carragher wrote in his column for The Telegraph.

“If you had told me before the tournament that Foden would only play 19 minutes of the first two World Cup games, my first thought would be that he must be injured.

“When asked to select my starting squad for the opening game against Iran, Foden was in it. The more the squad was studied, the harder it was to leave him out. He is too much of a special talent.

Talk to any football fan who has watched the Premier League in the last three years and ask ‘Who is the most naturally gifted English footballer today?’ and 80 percent would say Foden. The other 20 percent don’t watch closely enough.

“For Southgate to turn to his substitutes and choose City team-mate Jack Grealish for him felt strange. Would Pep Guardiola look to Grealish rather than Foden if he was looking for a winning goal? Highly unlikely.’

Carragher has questioned why Pep Guardiola puts his trust in Foden but not Southgate

In his 19 caps for England, Foden has found the net just twice and Carragher has admitted the 22-year-old has yet to replicate his City form for the Three Lions.

Carragher sees similarities between Foden and former Liverpool winger John Barnes, who also struggled at times to reproduce his club form on the international stage.

He believes Southgate should be keen to prevent history from repeating itself and to find a place for Foden in his team, as he claims the City striker would end up in other top international teams.

“Foden has had plenty of chances for England so it’s not like Southgate ignored him. But while it is still very early in his career, there have been times when I watched Foden play for his country and his situation reminded me of John Barnes in his heyday,” added Carragher.

For those too young to remember, between 1987 and 1991 Barnes was not only the most talented England player of his generation, he was streets ahead of the rest. Think of Thierry Henry during his peak years at Arsenal. That’s how good Barnes was for Liverpool.

“But to England he was a shadow of himself.

Carragher admires Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling, but thinks Foden should play more

Carragher has said Foden would be in the Spain team and should play for England

‘Often the question was asked whether the problem was Barnes or England. It can’t be that hard to accommodate a rare talent, can it?

It is imperative that history does not repeat itself with Foden. It’s already a shame he isn’t one of the first picks in the starting line-up, let alone the bench’s first go-to player.

When Foden played the last European Championship you would have thought that he would definitely have a place in the squad now. Instead, others have preceded him.

“I really like Bukayo Saka and I don’t criticize his selection given his Arsenal form. I also understand the loyalty to Raheem Sterling, who has been one of the best players in the Southgate era.

“We’ve rightly been talking a lot about Jude Bellingham over the past few days.

But can it just be brushed aside what Foden has done in the Premier League? To me he overshadows the chosen ones before him. I really believe if he was Spanish he would be in their first team.’