Phil Foden is aiming to channel the magic of Paul Gascoigne at Euro 96 in the Euro 2020 campaign – and has started by dyeing his hair to match the former England midfielder. Foden, 21, won the Professional Footballers’ Association young player of the year award after his breakout season at Manchester City, in which he became a regular as Pep Guardiola’s men sealed a third Premier League title in four years.
Despite a stellar season he faces a similar battle to force his way into Gareth Southgate’s line-up for Sunday’s Group D opener against Croatia at Wembley. Southgate has an embarrassment of riches to choose from, with Foden, Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish and Jadon Sancho vying for places alongside captain Harry Kane in attack.
“The quality is very high. We’ve got a lot of players who can play at the highest level as we’ve seen this year,” Foden said yesterday.
“We’ve also got experience with the likes of Harry Kane and (Jordan) Henderson. We have a great balance, we look really strong in this tournament and why not? We could win it.”
Foden’s new eye-catching blond hair mirrors Gascoigne’s trademark style 25 years ago. England fell just short on home soil then, losing on penalties to Germany in the semi-finals. The Three Lions will enjoy home advantage again for all three group games and face Scotland in their second match, just like in 1996, when Gascoigne scored his most memorable international goal.
“I don’t mind that at all, he was a great player,” Foden said on being compared to the man affectionately known as “Gazza”. “I remember watching highlights on the TV of Gazza – an unbelievable player. The full nation knows what he means for the country and what he did. “I wouldn’t be too bad if I try to bring a bit of Gazza on the pitch.”
White stunned by ‘mind-blowing’ Euro call-up
Brighton & Hove Albion defender Ben White yesterday said it was “surreal” to have earned a late call-up to England’s 26-man squad for the European Championship. The 23-year-old was named by manager Gareth Southgate as a replacement for injured Liverpool right back Trent Alexander-Arnold, who withdrew from the squad last week after a thigh injury during England’s 1-0 win over Austria.
White, who was part of Southgate’s 33-man provisional squad, made his full international debut in Sunday’s 1-0 win over Romania – the final warm-up game before the Euros – after featuring as a substitute in the previous game against Austria. “I was speechless and I felt amazing,” White told a news conference. “It’s mind-blowing. I didn’t really expect any of this to happen. I thought I’d be somewhere hot like Portugal (for the summer). Even being in the 33-man squad was enough for me. To make it to the final squad was unbelievable. I don’t think I’ve let it settle in just yet. I’ve played in all the leagues and before each one I wondered whether I could step up to that league, but I’ve managed to do it. It’s another one of them.”
England start their campaign against Croatia in the Group D opener on June 13 before they face Scotland on June 18 and the Czech Republic on June 22.
