Wes Brown believes Phil Foden can become an undroppable player for England by studying Wayne Rooney.
When the Three Lions opened their Euro 2024 campaign with a tight 1-0 victory over Serbia, Foden—the Premier League player of the year—failed to live up to his Manchester City form. He was switched from his preferred No. 10 spot to the left wing, where Jude Bellingham assumed the primary playmaking duty.
In addition, former England defender Brown wants to see Bellingham, 24, adjust his style of play for Thursday’s match against Denmark, just as Rooney had to do when he teamed up with Cristiano Ronaldo at Manchester United.
Speaking on Reach’s brand-new Euro Thrash podcast, which is available on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube, Brown stated: “We all know Foden has had a tremendous season, but he needs to put more effort into the game wherever he plays.
We all know how fantastic he is with the ball, so he will assume a little bit more responsibility, but he didn’t really engage in the match. That’s Jude Bellingham’s position, and you can’t move Jude out of it. He was used to playing in a different position for City this season, and it showed.
“I’ll give you an excellent example. Wayne Rooney is an incredible player who constantly wants the ball, but when he was playing with Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne would start to drop back and help him when you realized he was the right player.
“Players sometimes need to be smart enough to accomplish it. Jude is equally as unique as Foden—both players have the ability to contribute in crucial moments of a game.
“Jude really wants to get things moving, so he demands the ball. Phil needs to say, “All right, Jude’s doing that bit now. Can I find the positions I’ve been finding for Manchester City all season?”
“Find that space off the back line, just those four or five yards where he can get his first touches that will cement that panic in the defenders.”