Tim Sherwood has clearly lost the plot with his Phil Foden claim
Tim Sherwood has claimed that he would find it hard to leave Phil Foden out of the England squad this summer, despite the performances of Nottingham Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White.
The Manchester City midfielder claimed two assists in a 3-0 win against Crystal Palace on Wednesday, bringing his Premier League goal contribution tally in 2026 to three.
The 25-year-old will inevitably come across England manager Thomas Tuchel's thinking, along with several other options in the same position.
Eberechi Eze, Morgan Rogers, Cole Palmer and Jude Bellingham will also attempt to occupy a similar position, with the German likely only capable of taking three of them.
Gibbs-White's Nottingham Forest form should secure him a seat, but the likes of Foden seem to need to do far less to catch the eyes.
Tim Sherwood makes Phil Foden case
Foden was awful for England in March, and it is fair to say that the midfielder has never quite managed to thrive with the Three Lions on his chest.
There is no doubting his ability - the 2023-24 season saw the Man City man score 27 goals across all competitions as he carried his team to the Premier League title.
| Morgan Gibbs-White | Stats - Premier League 2025-26 (per 90) | Phil Foden |
| 1.66 | Shots | 1.65 |
| 0.40 | Goals | 0.32 |
| 0.12 | Assists | 0.23 |
| 0.29 | Expected goals (xG) | 0.29 |
| 0.55 | Possession won final third | 0.46 |
| 1.20 | Fouls won | 1.42 |
| 3.75 | Duels won | 4.27 |
But he was largely anonymous at the subsequent European Championship, and he has slipped into more of a squad role for Pep Guardiola this season.
That does not stop the likes of Sherwood from waxing lyrical about Foden as soon as he enjoys a positive performance, however.
"I would find it difficult not to put him in my team, let alone to put him on the plane," the former Tottenham manager told Sky Sports News on Thursday.
"He has to be on the plane. He would be on my team, I'd find a place for him."
He added: "If Thomas wants to play with a 10 who's going to play centrally, and find areas and know when to stand still, when to move, always checking his shoulder finding first-time passes like that - he was incredible last night.
"I'd find it difficult not to put him in the starting XI."
Morgan Gibbs-White deserves England chance
While Foden notched his third Premier League goal contribution in 2026 on Wednesday, Gibbs-White recorded his 13th last week.
The 26-year-old has led a team far beneath the technical quality of Man City, often carrying Nottingham Forest's attack from behind the striker.
Gibbs-White has single-handedly changed games for the Tricky Trees, playing a huge part as they have clinched Premier League safety.
On the other hand, Foden has been largely dropped from a Man City team in a race for the Premier League title, mostly making brief appearances off the bench.
On paper, it should not be a difficult choice for Tuchel this summer. Whether the German can resist the media pressure to pick the more popular player, however, remains to be seen.