Former Three Lions captain Terry Butcher has called for Phil Foden to raise his game for England after his ‘disappointing’ performance in their Euro 2024 opener against Serbia.
Gareth Southgate’s side got off to a winning start in their Group C opener on Sunday night with Jude Bellingham’s bullet header early in the first-half enough to seal all three points.
Foden by contrast endured a quiet night, failing to impose himself and cutting a frustrated figure at one stage, throwing his arms in the air after watching a move break down in the second-half.
Foden, who played the full 90 minutes of the group opener, is coming off the back of a sublime season for Manchester City, often unplayable as he helped his side seal a fourth consecutive title having scored 27 times while laying on 12 assists.
But he is yet to consistently replicate that form in an England shirt, with Butcher, who won 77 caps for his country, admitting he would have been tempted to haul off the attacking midfielder against Serbia.
‘I was disappointed with Foden,’ Butcher told Metro.co.uk courtesy of Free Bets.
‘That is not the Phil Foden we have seen all season at Manchester City. He came into that middle position too early and too often.
‘Kieran Trippier is the one who would give England the width on the left. Trippier is a good England defender, very tough but he is not naturally left footed like Luke Shaw or Ben Chilwell getting forward. We’re limited down that side a bit.
‘Foden played the entire game, I probably would have taken him off earlier. He has had a long season, but he hasn’t played for England the same way he has played for Man City. Sometimes we have seen glimpses of it and I am sure it will come and hopefully in this competition.
‘While everyone is talking about Bellingham and rightly so, we have other attacking talent who have been there and done it at club level. It is pretty formidable , that foursome [Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, Foden, Harry Kane].
‘It is a problem for other teams but we have got to make it a problem for them and give them the ball in key areas for them to work their magic.’
Butcher gives verdict on Marc Guehi performance
While Bellingham was England’s star man on the night, Marc Guehi also shone at the heart of defence alongside John Stones.
Filling the void left by Harry Maguire who was not included in the final squad, the Crystal Palace defender turned in a composed performance – particularly in the first half where he completed every pass attempted and won every duel and tackle he was involved in against formidable centre forward opposition in Aleksandr Mitrovic and Dusan Vlahovic.
‘He won headers against some very experienced players. I was really pleased with his performance’ Butcher said of the 23-year-old defender.
‘He knocked the ball around very well, to the point where you couldn’t take which one was his strongest foot. His pace is also a big asset. But I loved the way he threaded the balls through to the midfield, into Bellingham, into Kane. The confidence to do that is great.’
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