Jamie Carragher revealed who he believes should be England’s number 10 going forward: Phil Foden or Jude Bellingham.
Much like Germany did with Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala against Scotland, Gareth Southgate seemingly tried to replicate a similar tactic in his side’s 1-0 win against Serbia.
While Bellingham thrived, scoring the all-important winner and being the best player on the pitch, Foden was largely uninvolved in proceedings. Based on Sunday’s contest, the experiment failed to work.
Jamie Carragher makes Jude Bellingham vs Phil Foden claim after England beat Serbia
Foden’s showing was criticised, with Micah Richards revealing he felt “sad” watching him “on the periphery” of the clash.
Gareth Southgate will likely be delighted that despite his tactic not working out to the fullest, the Three Lions won what ended up being quite a tough test for his side.
Jamie Carragher, however, came to the conclusion that Bellingham and not Foden should be the number 10 for England.
Carragher told The Telegraph: “There has been a lot of talk about [Jude] Bellingham being deeper to allow [Phil] Foden to play as the [number] 10. England’s opening goal shows why it has to be Bellingham in that role.”
“He has done that all season at Real Madrid in a team that won La Liga and the Champions League. The bravery to go flying in there with other bodies was a joy to see. You don’t see many headers like that these days, especially from midfielders.”
Harsh to make such a claim about Phil Foden
While Bellingham was undeniably brilliant against Serbia, it is quite harsh for Jamie Carragher to make such a claim about Foden.
Manchester City’s number 47 has often scored goals in similar fashion where he arrived late into the box, especially last season — with his strikes against Nottingham Forest in both games and his second goal against West Ham at the Etihad Stadium.
In addition, to arrive at such sweeping conclusions about Foden, who was the best attacking midfielder in the Premier League is short-sighted.
Jamie Carragher, instead, should be encouraging Gareth Southgate to put together a setup where both Bellingham and Foden can thrive.
International football is often decided by how well players are profiled — as indicated by Ronald Koeman’s decision to field Cody Gakpo as a left-winger against Poland, despite him playing as a striker for the Netherlands at the World Cup.
Gakpo was exceptional in the position and similarly, Southgate also has top players at Foden at his disposal who he is responsible for ensuring also look as threatening in an England shirt.