Manchester City pencil in crunch talks over Phil Foden’s Etihad Stadium future | OneFootball

Talks between Manchester City and Phil Foden have now been pencilled in to discuss the 25-year-old’s long-term future, according to new reports.

Foden has two years remaining on his current deal at the Etihad Stadium as Manchester City await a return to top form for the England international with a view to retain their academy graduate’s services for the seasons to come.

It has been a turbulent 12 months or so for Foden, who spearheaded Manchester City to a fourth successive Premier League title in 2024 and was voted as the PFA Players’ Player of the Year for his personal best season at the Etihad Stadium.

However, the Stockport-born forward has admitted to not having been at his best mentally and physically in the last year as Manchester City have undergone their most challenging season under Pep Guardiola – finishing third in the Premier League with 71 points last term, exiting the UEFA Champions League at the Round of 16 stage and losing the 2025 FA Cup final.

Foden enjoyed a promising summer in the United States as Manchester City impressed in the FIFA Club World Cup group-stage, finishing top of their group before crashing out in the Round of 16 stage courtesy of a 4-3 defeat to Al-Hilal in extra-time.

City are witnessing a transition on the pitch after the departures of several senior stars in the recent transfer window, with newly-appointed director of football Hugo Viana marking his arrival with a major revamp of Guardiola’s first-team squad.

The notable exit of Kevin De Bruyne – who joined Napoli on a free transfer upon the expiration of his Manchester City contract – has meant the creative workload will need to be shared by the likes of Foden and summer signing pair Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki in the seasons to come.

With Cherki on the sidelines and Reijnders still adapting to life at the Etihad Stadium, Foden has showed signs of a return to his best with an eye-catching set of displays in the last fortnight against Manchester United, Napoli and Huddersfield Town.

There was a wide-held expectation that Manchester City bosses would wait for Foden to return to his best in the opening months of the season and assess the attacker’s performances before tabling contract renewal talks with the six-time Premier League winner’s representatives.

According to the information of TBR Football’s Graeme Bailey, City have now pencilled in new contract talks with Foden, with his current deal set to expire in the summer of 2027 and, to this point, no talks having been opened on the matter.

It is explained that an agreement had been in place that saw City wanting Foden to concentrate on getting back to full fitness and focussing solely on himself, with the player fully on board with those plans and no doubt from either party that he would be back to his best.

Now, contract talks between Foden’s team and Viana are due to take place in the upcoming international breaks, with the 25-year-old also determined to push and become a key part for Thomas Tuchel’s England ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.