“Never crossed my mind” – Phil Foden opens up on new Man City contract and hunger to prove himself again | OneFootball

Phil Foden has opened up on the significance of his new Manchester City contract in a candid interview, insisting he has never once considered leaving the club and that he still has plenty left to prove.

The 26-year-old signed a new four-year deal keeping him at the Etihad Stadium until 2030, with an option to extend for a further 12 months, in what was one of the most significant pieces of business the club completed this summer.

Foden joined Manchester City’s academy at the age of four and has never played senior professional football for anyone other than the club, making his commitment to the Etihad Stadium about far more than a contract renewal.

The midfielder had difficult 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons by his own standards, losing his place in the England squad for the recent FIFA World Cup under Thomas Tuchel – a decision that generated significant public discussion and that Foden addressed in typical fashion, with measured honesty rather than deflection.

I never thought about leaving Man City, says Foden

Speaking to Simon Bajkowski of the Manchester Evening News, Foden said: “It made me feel steady, relaxed, and just concentrate on being the best version of me and give back to the club for trusting me.

“I’ve been here since I was four or five and never thought about leaving once – never crossed my mind. There are no changes I need to make. I just need to work on my own game and train hard – that’s what I’m trying.

“You come through the academy, reach the top, then the best player of the season, won the league that year as well. It’s obviously amazing. I have a good attitude about that. When you’re on top, don’t get too comfortable and then I was trying to prove it again.

“Obviously it’s not gone like that at the moment, but I’ve still got a lot of career left. I’m still young so I’ve still got a lot to prove to everyone. Hopefully I perform well and do what I need to do. That’s it.”

What does Foden’s interview tell us about his Manchester City future?

The clarity and confidence with which Foden speaks about his situation is itself revealing – there is no self-pity in his assessment, no attempt to reframe a genuinely difficult period, and no overreach in his ambitions for what comes next.

Maresca, who has spoken about Foden as someone he regards it as “my duty” to help back to his best, reached out to the midfielder personally when he was left out of England’s World Cup squad – a gesture that Foden has spoken warmly about and that speaks to the personal investment the new manager is making in what he clearly views as a central figure in his plans for the season ahead.

The reference to reaching “the top” and winning Player of the Season – the 2024-25 campaign – followed immediately by an honest acknowledgement that it “hasn’t gone like that at the moment” is the kind of self-diagnosis that elite managers value as much as the form itself. A player who can identify clearly where he has fallen short, without catastrophising, is one who is already halfway through the work of correcting it.

At 26 and committed to the Etihad Stadium until at least 2030, Foden has every reason to view this season not as a redemption arc but simply as the next chapter in a career that, by any objective measure, still has its most significant moments ahead of it.