1 week Ago By [email protected] (Nathan Ridley, Ben Crawford)
Manchester City ace Phil Foden has taken to social media with a succinct message following distasteful chants about his mother during Sunday's derby clash with Manchester United. A group of United supporters were overheard singing an offensive chant about the England international in the first half of what ended as a lacklustre 0-0 stalemate at Old Trafford . After the match, City manager Pep Guardiola expressed that those involved should feel 'ashamed', and the player himself has since taken to social media.
"Lack of class," manager Guardiola remarked during a press briefing regarding the chants. "But it's not United, it's the people, you know? "We are so exposed, people who are on the screen in world football - managers, owners, and football players especially. Honestly, I don't understand the mind of the people involving the mum of Phil.
It's a lack of integrity, class, and they should be ashamed." Now, for the first time since the unpleasant episode, 24-year-old Foden has posted on Instagram, having faced jeers from United fans when substituted for Jeremy Doku in the 57th minute. "We keep going," declared the England star in his short message after the draw, reports the Mirror.
By the high standards set by Foden and his colleagues, this campaign has been somewhat underwhelming for many. The young midfielder has netted 10 times and provided six assists across 40 outings amidst City's challenges. Speculation has surfaced regarding his role in the national squad, given he didn't play the entirety of either World Cup qualifier last month.
Following Foden's brace in the 6-0 thrashing of Ipswich back in January, Guardiola hinted at the midfielder grappling with 'problems'. "We spoke many times the last month, and he was a completely different boy to how he arrived at the beginning of the season," the City manager explained. "He had a few problems, but they are human beings and sometimes when you have a setback and that is normal.
But we are really pleased that he is happy again and enjoying playing, and that is really good for all of us." As for Sunday's lacklustre derby, Guardiola recognised that his squad didn't have enough to overcome a tenacious United side, who themselves offered scant in terms of offensive play. "The players know it.
There's a process when the ball is on one side, they have to be in a position," he rued. "Today was not good ..
. For many years I've faced 5-4-1 with teams defending very deep. "We should maintain the positions as in our past victories against such formations but today we simply weren't effective enough to trouble them or inflict more damage than we did.
".
