Phil Foden has been speaking about his recent form for England – and revealed there is something he is guilty of doing sometimes.
The Manchester City starlet has come in for criticism for his performances at Euro 2024, with the 24-year-old having been unable to replicate his amazing form at City.
Foden has not been helped; Gareth Southgate has been insistent on using Foden on the left so far in Germany.
While Foden has shown he can play there, he has just finished a season in which he played mostly in the middle. He finished 2023/24 as the Premier League Player of the Season.
Foden accepts he could improve at the moment – and he also made an intriguing remark about something he does in games.
Phil Foden admits he is sometimes ‘too hyped’ for games, Pep Guardiola made a similar suggestion
Foden is someone who just loves playing football.
You can tell that by the way he talks and the way he plays. Foden is 24 now, but still has that same exuberance he had when he burst onto the scene.
Foden is just determined to help his team, which is obviously a brilliant trait.
But he admits that sometimes his emotions can spill over. He told the Daily Mail: “Sometimes I can get myself too hyped for a game.
“It’s just about believing what you’ve done in the past, not getting carried away, not reading what people are saying, or trying too hard. I have to remain relaxed and hopefully let my football do the talking.”
It is interesting that Foden has said this, because it’s something that Pep Guardiola has also noticed.
The Spaniard said back in March of this year: “Sometimes his game is excited, and you have to be more calm because of the excitement he has. It’s a question of time.”
Foden must show calm when the situation demands it
The fact we are only really talking about this as a way for Foden to improve shows that he is doing extremely well.
A lot of the time, Foden being pumped for games is a great thing.
You need players to be determined to win and leave it all out there.
But sometimes there are situations when Foden needs to curb his enthusiasm a little. Currently – and by his own admission – he is frustrated with England and this may be having an impact on his performance.
That said, he has still been nowhere near as poor as some have made out, and you can see him really trying to make things happen.
For Foden, it is about finding that balance of showing the right levels of enthusiasm, determination and calm.
