Phil Foden’s hat-trick against Manchester United on Sunday saw him surpass the 50-goal mark under Pep Guardiola – bettering a record set by Lionel Messi.
All of the England international’s 180 matches at senior club level have come under Guardiola, since making his debut in the 2017-18 campaign. Alongside Erling Haaland, Foden bagged a treble in Manchester City’s 6-3 derby demolition of United on Sunday – with the second of his strikes being his 50 th goal for the club.
At just 22 years and 127 days old, Foden has become the youngest player under Guardiola to reach the milestone of 50 goals – beating the previous record set by Messi at Barcelona. The Argentine superstar was 35 days older than Foden when he bagged his 50 th club goal under Guardiola – aged 22 years and 162 days.
City boss Pep Guardiola said of Foden after the game: "Phil is a reality, still is a young lad, but he played important games in the last years with us, not just the quality he has, you see how he runs, how he presses, the intensity he does it and the quality he has.
"Last season he played many games as a striker, at the end he will be able to play as an attacking midfielder. Close to the box he has incredible sense. What a talent, what a reality. He is a good lad, he lives for football. Hopefully, he can stay many, many years for us and his private life can be settled perfectly and just focus on what he loves, to play football."
Foden, 22, lined-up on the right of the City front-three with Haaland through the middle and Jack Grealish on the left. Foden hasn't played much in that position before this season, with Guardiola opting to use Riyad Mahrez, Gabriel Jesus and Raheem Sterling on the right-hand side in recent years – the latter two of whom have subsequently left the club.
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Foden moved out to the wing more often, and he appears to be relishing that role. His all-round performance in the Manchester derby was sublime, opening the scoring inside the first 10 minutes with a cool first-time finish before adding a further two strikes in the second half.
Foden has now moved up to six goals for the campaign for Guardiola’s side in just 11 appearances – averaging more than a goal per game. His best goal return was in the 2020-21 campaign, when he bagged 16 goals and followed that up with 14 strikes in the 2021-22 season.
