Troy Deeney feels England made one mistake during their 1-0 win against Serbia that did not suit Phil Foden.
Alan Shearer felt the reason Foden did not particularly impact the contest was due to being deployed as a left-winger.
However, Jamie O’Hara simply feels the decorated attacker does not step up to the plate in an England shirt.
It is safe to say that aside from the Three Lions’ display in Gelsenkirchen, Foden has become the biggest talking point from the game.
Troy Deeney says he “didn’t like” what happened with Phil Foden against Serbia
If Manchester City’s number 47 starts against Denmark on Thursday and does not live up to the billing, it would not be a surprise if he is dropped.
At Euro 2020, the 24-year-old lost his place to Bukayo Saka on the right-wing after starting his side’s first two games against Croatia and Scotland.
Analysing how England performed against Serbia, Troy Deeney felt they did not give the ball to Foden enough during the encounter.
Deeney said on the Up Front podcast: “I thought the bit I didn’t like for Phil [Foden] was, I don’t think we gave him the ball a lot. I think when he’s at Man City, yes, they dominate the ball but he’s usually to having a touch every 30 seconds, a minute.”
“There were times where he was going two, three, four minutes without the ball and a lot of his best was done, especially second-half in our left-back area, bringing the ball down, trying to run us up the pitch 40-50 yards.”
Phil Foden should not view playing for England like he does for Man City
It is difficult to disagree with Troy Deeney as often, while Foden was rightly positioned, several England players chose not to pass the ball to him against Serbia.
The Manchester City midfielder cut a frustrated figure as the game wore on.
However, where Foden might have to change his outlook when he puts on an England shirt is viewing it as a different experience to that of playing for City.
At the Etihad Stadium, the Stockport-born technician is often found in dangerous pockets of space by the likes of Rodri and Mateo Kovacic.
But the dynamics at England are different and understandably so, considering the players do not play with each other often.
For Foden to impact games in the same way he does for his boyhood club, simply demanding the ball might not be sufficient; he may have to often vacate his position to try and make things happen.
Otherwise, the possibility of the in-form attacker having a quiet game for his country against Denmark and in future outings remains likely.