Foden shines as Man City rout Athens 5-1 despite Haaland, Semenyo injuries

Enzo Maresca believes Phil Foden has provided evidence that his prolonged slump might finally be over by scoring a hat-trick in Manchester City’s 5-1 rout of AEK Athens in the Champions League.

After struggling badly over the last two seasons, England playmaker Foden could be on the brink of a long-awaited renaissance after his sublime display at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday.

It has been a trying period for the 26-year-old, who has admitted suffering from mental health issues.

Foden fell out of favour with former City boss Pep Guardiola and had not scored for 10 months prior to his goal in Saturday’s Premier League win against Ipswich.

This season has been another turbulent experience for Foden, who was sent off in City’s win at Manchester United and has been forced to battle for a place in Maresca’s starting lineup.

Taking advantage of injuries that left Erling Haaland on the bench against AEK and sidelined Antoine Semenyo for eight weeks, Foden starred on the left wing before switching to the “false nine” role as the focal point of City’s attack.

“It is good news for me because you know he is doing well and this is what we want for many reasons,” City boss Maresca said.

“First of all, because he is a top player and we know that. Happy for him, but also happy for the team that we have one more weapon that we can use.”

Foden’s hat-trick will surely have caught England manager Thomas Tuchel’s eye as he prepares to pick his squad for the Nations League matches against Croatia and Spain in November.

Long heralded as one of England’s brightest talents, Foden was left out of his country’s World Cup squad earlier this year in a damning sign of his fall from grace.

Having ended his run without a goal in the Champions League since November 2025, Foden now has to produce nights like this on a regular basis to earn the trust of Maresca and Tuchel.