The City academy graduate and lifelong Blue has won the Premier League four times, the FA Cup once, the Carabao Cup on four occasions and the Community Shield twice.
Individually, he has been named both PFA Young Player of the Year and Premier League Young Player of the Season in each of the last two campaigns.
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Now he has agreed a three-year extension with the Club, meaning he will stay at the Etihad Stadium until 2027.
The Stockport-born playmaker has come a long, long way from the 16-year-old who shot to recognition when he was named on the bench for the 2016 Champions League meeting with Celtic before leading England to glory at the 2017 Under-17 World Cup less than a year later.
His statistics across his five seasons at the top level paint the picture of a player who is growing in stature all the time, taking on ever more responsibility as Pep Guardiola’s men continue to chase every trophy in the game.
In total, Foden has played 182 times for City, scoring 52 goals and registering 36 assists.
Here we’ll take a look at how his numbers show how he went from an outstanding prospect to pivotal to City’s plans…
2017/18
Played: 10
Starts: 3
Minutes: 330
Goals: 0
Assists: 1
Having only just turned 17, Foden went on the pre-season tour of the USA and impressed his coaches.
“It’s a long time since I saw something like this,” said Guardiola after Foden’s performance in the friendly with Manchester United.
“His performance was another level. He’s 17 years old, he’s a City player, he grew up in the academy, he loves the club, he’s a City fan - for us he’s a gift.”
After that he went to the Under-17 World Cup. Upon his return, his competitive City debut came as a late sub against Feyenoord in the Champions League.
He then broke the record to become the youngest English player, at the age of 17 years and 192 days, to start in a Champions League match when he played against Shakhtar Donetsk. His other two starts came in a Champions League tie with FC Basel and the Carabao Cup quarter-final against Leicester City.
He was a late substitute in the 3-0 Carabao Cup final win over Arsenal before he became the youngest ever player to receive a Premier League winners’ medal.
2018/19
Played: 26
Starts: 11
Minutes: 1,112
Goals: 7
Assists: 2
18 at the start of the season, Foden’s year started with 75 minutes against Chelsea in the Community Shield. He provided an assist in that one and scored his first goal in senior football on the 25 September to round off a Carabao Cup victory over Oxford United.
His Champions League and Premier League involvement prior to Christmas was limited to a host of substitute appearances and the full 90 minutes of the group stage clash with Hoffenheim.
However, he was a key part of the ruthless winning machine in the domestic cups – playing in every Carabao Cup match until he was unused substitute in the final and scoring three times in the first three rounds of the FA Cup.
Towards the end of the season and with City’s title seemingly secure, Foden was given starts against Cardiff City, Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City – largely in a central midfield role. City ended the season with all domestic titles.
2019/20
Played: 38
Starts: 18
Minutes: 1,741
Goals: 8
Assists: 9
For the third successive season, Foden’s time on the pitch shot up. He enjoyed seven more starts than the previous campaign and increased his time as part of the action by more than 600 minutes.
Despite this being a less impressive year for the first team in general, Foden improved his minutes per goal involvement from 123.6 in 2018/19 to 102.4 in 2019/20. With 17 goal involvements, it was almost double what he had clocked previously.
He was also trusted a lot in the biggest games, with 23 of his appearances coming in the Premier League – including all but one of the 10 remaining matches after the enforced hiatus due to COVID restrictions.
Before that break, he had played the full 90 minutes of the successful Carabao Cup final against Aston Villa on the right wing. He remained on either wing for much of the rest of the season and that is currently where he continues to shine.
2020/21
Played: 50
Starts: 36
Minutes: 3,375
Goals: 16
Assists: 10
The busiest season of his burgeoning career to date, and one so impressive it earned him the PFA and Premier League Young Player awards. His minutes on the pitch almost doubled, while his goal involvements again rose from 17 to 26.
With 16 goals across all competitions, he was our second highest scorer and only one behind Ilkay Gundogan.
That tally included nine in the Premier League including against Chelsea and Liverpool, from whom we reclaimed our title, as well an FA Cup quarter-final strike against Arsenal and one in each leg of the UEFA Champions League last eight tie with Borussia Dortmund.
He also featured in the Champions League Squad of the Season for the first time as we reached the final of the competition.
2021/22
Played: 45
Starts: 36
Minutes: 3,185
Goals: 14
Assists: 11
After missing the start of the season with a foot injury, Foden was soon into the thick of the action for Guardiola’s side – this time playing on 28 occasions in the Premier League.
He again scored nine in the league, playing more often in the front three than the midfield, but his minutes on the pitch and goal involvement return was slightly down on the previous campaign.
Having missed some matches through injury and the COVID backlog forcing a condensed season, his workload was managed. However, it was the year he was at his creative best so far – setting up 11 goals for team-mates and only behind Kevin De Bruyne in that ranking.
Again, he took home the PFA and Premier League Young Player awards as City lifted a fourth Premier League title under Pep Guardiola.
2022/23 so far
Played: 13
Starts: 10
Minutes: 810
Goals: 7
Assists: 3
We’re only in the early stages of the 2022/23 season, with all the titles still to be decided, but our man looks to be at his marauding best. With 10 goal involvements, including his incredible hat-trick against Manchester United, the 22-year-old is scoring or assisting every 81 minutes.
Playing largely on the wings, Foden has struck up a close relationship with fellow 22-year-old and boyhood Blue Erling Haaland. The work of Haaland in terms of occupying defenders appears to be leaving gaps for Foden to exploit and should he remain injury free and in this kind of form, it looks set to be his best season yet.
At the tender age of 22, Foden is already a highly experienced professional with a record to match the ability of a player with the world at his feet.
