Four years ago, Phil Foden was taken to Russia 2018 by a sportswear company that was marketing him as a future superstar of the global game.
In Qatar over the next month, Foden is determined to prove them right. A lot of judges, commentators, pundits and club team-mates believe the job has already been done, believe Foden’s performances for Manchester City have already secured his place amongst the elite.
The frequent, lavish endorsements from Pep Guardiola and a new five-year Etihad contract worth £60million would endorse that view. But in the build-up to a World Cup, there is, inevitably, a focus on the blue-chip participants and, this time around, we are talking about the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Robert Lewandowski, Harry Kane even.
These are the characters who adorn the skyscrapers of Qatar, these are the poster players. And Foden bridles when it is suggested he is even close to being bracketed with those types of footballers.
“No, definitely not,” he declares. “The people you've just mentioned are way above me at the moment but I like to think I could be there one day. I've got to score in big games and in big finals to be world class. I know I'm capable of doing that so it's something I strive for and look forward to.
“It's all about taking small steps in the right direction. I just want to take my club form into the national team. With my club form this year, I've been scoring a lot of goals and I want to bring that to the national team.”
Foden had to sit out the Euro final with a freak foot injury and it is fair to say his England career has been a little stop-start since he emerged on to the senior international scene in 2020.
“I don’t think it is easy coming into a team and not knowing the players very well,” he says. “You have to learn to play with different players and what they like best - running behind or wanting balls to feet, just little details like that. But now, I have had enough experience in the England team to understand the players. Hopefully I can bring that into the World Cup.”
If Foden is given a starting role against Iran on Monday, he is likely to be on the left side of an attacking three. But interestingly, as he tries to establish himself as a world-class operator in the long-term, Foden sees his future in the number ten role, almost a Lionel Messi role.
He explains: “I see myself playing behind the striker in the future or one of the eights or tens at City. Hopefully, in the future, I can play there more and show more of my game that I know I am capable of doing.
“We’ve got some great players in this team who play there, like Mase (Mason Mount) and Madders (James Maddison), players who can receive it in the pocket on the half-turn and can make the killer pass or shoot from distance. I like to look at those players and hopefully one day I can definitely play in that role as well.”
As it happens, one of the players who accompanied Foden on that marketing trip to Russia in 2018 was a certain Mason Mount. And now, they have both got the chance to prove they really are world stars.
