I expect a lot more from myself – Phil Foden keen to make impact against Germany

The England midfielder has been substituted twice so far at Euro 2020 and was left out against the Czech Republic.

Simon Peach
Friday 25 June 2021 14:47 BST
Phil Foden feels he can do better for England
Phil Foden feels he can do better for England (PA Wire)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

England playmaker Phil Foden is desperate to prove his worth against Germany having so far fallen short of his own expectations at the Euros.

While the season ended in Manchester City’s disappointing Champions League final loss to Chelsea, this has been a campaign to cherish for the talented 21-year-old.

Foden added further Premier League and Carabao Cup triumphs to his already impressive medal haul, with his outstanding performances for Pep Guardiola’s side seeing him named PFA Young Player of the Year.

But the City star does not believe he has shown enough of that form for England and is determined to put that right, starting with Tuesday’s eagerly anticipated last-16 tie against Germany.

“To be honest, I expect a lot more from myself but I’m not going to be too harsh,” Foden said.

“I didn’t really get involved in the games as much I would have liked. Hopefully, I can get the opportunity to play again and show what I am about. I feel like I’ve still got so much more to show this tournament.

“Like I’ve done for my club, I’ve been scoring a lot of goals and I just want to continue that form into the national team.

“And I believe that, hopefully in the next game, I can start getting involved in the goals.”

Foden hit the post early in the 1-0 win against Croatia in the Group D opener before being taken off in the second half, just as he was in the drab 0-0 draw with rivals Scotland.

The 21-year-old was left out of the 23-man squad for Tuesday’s win against the Czech Republic as he was on a yellow card, and watched a performance he felt was the Three Lions’ best to date at Euro 2020.

Asked if he was optimistic of there being more to come against Germany, Foden told UEFA: “Definitely.  I’m hoping, come the Germany game, we can just express ourselves.

“With the attackers we’ve got we can really hurt them, so hopefully we turn up. We’re as good as anyone on our day.

“Obviously, I wasn’t born when all of this rivalry was going on (with Germany).

“We’re a new team now and we want to create our own history. You can’t think too much about what’s happened in the past. We’re just going to focus on the game and create our own future.”

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in