Roy Keane believes Man City midfielder Phil Foden must start for England, saying: "There's great competition in that England squad and Gareth [Southgate] is very lucky but Foden has to be in that starting XI. For me, this kid is an absolute team player. He has to be in that England team"
Foden's double completed the turnaround against Man Utd following Marcus Rashford's stunning opener before Erling Haaland added a last-minute third in the champions' 3-1 win at the Etihad Stadium, which kept them a point behind Liverpool in the race for this season's Premier League title.
Seven of the midfielder's nine league goals this season have come since Boxing Day and six since the start of February, with the 23-year-old in arguably the form of his life ahead of an England double-header coming up later this month.
Speaking on Super Sunday, former Man Utd captain Keane said the midfielder, who has started four of England's last five matches, has to be in Gareth Southgate's team with Euro 2024 now only three months away.
"There's great competition in that England squad and Gareth [Southgate] is very lucky but Foden has to be in that starting XI," Keane said.
"As brilliant as he was going forward today, the other bits of the game, his running back and doing the job for the team.
Gary Neville, another former Man Utd captain, heaped further praise on Foden on the Gary Neville Podcast, where he said England would be "struggling" if they could not find room for the midfielder in their starting line-up - as he would get into any other team in world football.
He said: "England have got Bellingham, they've got Kane, they've got Foden, but Foden is something really special.
"If we can't make room for Phil Foden, and build around him, we're struggling. Gareth [Southgate] has done a brilliant job, but Foden is something that is completely different. He would get into any team in the world, and we need to put him into his best position, whatever he feels that is, whatever Gareth thinks that is.
"For City, for Pep, he got him into the team, pulled him out, got him in, pulled him out, and you wondered if he'd ever really cement a position. But now he's there, he's in concrete. The derby games, Liverpool, Man Utd, were always emotional for City.
"But he's so cold, he just looks unfazed by anything. His temperament is amazing. He's single-handedly got City back in that game, with what is a world-class strike to start with, but the one-two around Casemiro, who falls for it and can't get near him - that's a classic little move, it's simple but beautiful."
Reporting By: Ajayi Oluwaseun Michael.
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