Premier League fanatics know all about Phil Foden, the 20-year-old Manchester City maestro. But what about 17-year-old England international Jude Bellingham?
He has featured in 24 of Borussia Dortmund’s 28 Bundesliga games this season, starting 15. Because he’s in Germany, you might not have seen too much of him, but Bellingham took his chance to impress over two legs against City.
Here, Sportsmail’s CHRIS SUTTON looks at these two England starlets who seem set to feature at Euro 2020 this summer…
Phil Foden (left) and Jude Bellingham (right) are two of England’s most in-form players
QUICK FEET
History was made in the Bundesliga in September when one 17-year-old set up another to score.
Jude Bellingham got the ball out from under him and played a pass behind the back line into Giovanni Reyna. I like that side to Bellingham. For a big lad — he is 6ft 1in and growing — he has got quick feet.
Against City, he used his left foot to control the ball, opened up his body then found the top corner with his right foot.
Phil Foden is equally fabulous with his feet, if not better. His exceptional first touch and close control gives him that edge over opponents.
Both of these guys can manoeuvre and manipulate the ball brilliantly and they will only get better over time.
FODEN – 9/10
BELLINGHAM – 9/10
Bellingham is 6ft 1in but has quick feet and showed all his skill in scoring against Man City
CREATIVITY
In terms of goals per game, Foden is scoring 0.4 compared to Bellingham’s 0.1. In assists, it is 0.3 v 0.2. In chances created, it is 2.7 v 0.8. So there is no question that Foden is the more creative right now.
He graduated from the Pep Guardiola school of creativity. He trains alongside the best in the business in Kevin De Bruyne and always looks forward.
Foden is always moving and defenders cannot rest because of that.
Bellingham is improving in this department. In the last 10 days alone he saw a first-leg strike wrongly disallowed against City, scored his first in the Bundesliga against Stuttgart and fired a superb second-leg goal against City.
At 17, he has got plenty of time to catch up on Foden’s per-game numbers.
FODEN – 9/10
BELLINGHAM – 7.5/10
Foden comes out on top when it comes to creativity as he is scoring 0.4 goals a game currently
DEFENSIVE NOUS
Here is a super stat for you: no one in the Champions League this season has made more tackles than Bellingham.
There is a tenacious side to this young man. He tackles, he intercepts, he recovers and recycles the ball.
He has got that defensive nous, as we saw with his goal-line clearance against Riyad Mahrez. But that is not to say Foden does not bother doing any of this.
If you do not graft, you do not get in Guardiola’s team.
Part of City’s philosophy is to win the ball back once you lose it. On that note, here is another statistic: nobody in the Champions League this season has won possession in the final third more often than Foden.
It is not that the 20-year-old isn’t defensively minded — just that most of that work is done higher up the pitch.
FODEN – 8.5/10
BELLINGHAM – 9/10
Nobody in the Champions League this season has managed more tackles than Bellingham
SPATIAL AWARENESS
City’s players rotate and pick up pockets of space like it is second nature.
Foden never shies away from asking for the ball — and neither does Bellingham.
On Saturday against Stuttgart he drifted into the space between the defensive and midfield lines, called for the ball and from a central position bagged his first Bundesliga goal. Then the same thing happened against City on Wednesday night.
It is good for a teenager to have that awareness. He will continue to work at it, I’m sure.
If you can read situations earlier than others, then you will always give yourself an extra edge.
FODEN – 9/10
BELLINGHAM – 8/10
Foden (right) is comfortable under pressure and never shies away from presenting for the ball
FRAME
Both are built perfectly to do what they do.
I would not say Foden is physical and you are unlikely to see the 5ft 7in midfielder shoulder barge a defender into the advertising boards. But he has got balance and he can ride a challenge well.
Bellingham, who has got the athletic build to go box-to-box, has had the best of both worlds. He grew up in the Championship, where he learned to be physical. Now he is in the Bundesliga, where he is honing his technical skills.
When asked recently where his experienced demeanour on the field came from, Bellingham answered: ‘Confidence.’
If I was doing what he was doing at 17, I would be confident, too.
FODEN – 9/10
BELLINGHAM – 9/10
Having previously played in the Championship, Bellingham learned to be physical in the game
FINAL VERDICT
England are blessed to have this talent coming through.
Whether Gareth Southgate decides they are worthy of starting at the Euros remains to be seen. But many caps await.
If they are works in progress, I cannot wait to see the finished products.
If Foden is the ‘Stockport Iniesta’, then Bellingham might become known as the ‘Stourbridge Stevie G’.
FODEN – 44.5/50
BELLINGHAM – 42.5/50
Both are sublime talents and are pushing to be in England’s squad for this summer’s Euros