BBC pundit and former Chelsea star Pet Nevin has heaped praise on Man City youngster Phil Foden after his display in the Carabao Cup against Fulham.
The 18-year–old put in another display beyond his years last night and Nevin was blown away, and said that he could be City’s replacement for David Silva after the Spaniard leaves.
“Foden is absolutely extraordinary,” Nevin said on BBC Radio 5 Live Sport last night, “there is absolutely no doubt about that.”
“He, for me, is absolutely the future of Manchester City.”
“One day Silva will leave there and I’m looking at Foden and thinking he can fit in there and he can definitely do that job at the top level of the Premier League.”
OPINION
Wow, high praise indeed from Nevin, but this won’t come as much of a surprise to Man City fans, who are well aware of how good their young player is. The 18-year-old has already made 18 appearances for Man City and that includes eight outings this season. He’s already scored his first senior goal too, in the Carabao Cup against Oxford United in the previous round. What’s the best thing for his development now? It might be to stick with the first team, get more experience under Guardiola and get more minutes in the cup competitions and the Premier League, if and when City have the title sown up. But, a loan move in January, to the right team, could possibly accelerate his development. A move down to the Championship might seem counter to this but in Leeds under Marcelo Bielsa, you’ve got a manager very similar to Guardiola, and their promotion run-in could really work wonders for him for next season. It’s unlikely to happen but either way Foden is going to be a sensation in the Premier League before too long. As Nevin said, there is absolutely no doubt about that.