Can Jude Bellingham & Phil Foden play together for England - are they the new Steven Gerrard & Frank Lampard?

England ran out as 1-0 victors over Serbia in Euro 2024 last night - Jude Bellingham was the most impressive player on the pitch by a considerable distance, but the same could not be said for Manchester City’s Phil Foden.

To accommodate Bellingham’s presence in the team, Foden was shoved out wide, which limited his effectiveness and made it difficult for him to grow into the proceedings. While he had played on both wings for City last season, he looked decidedly uncomfortable in that particular role for the Three Lions.

Foden and Bellingham are two of England’s best players and are at their best when played in central midfield. Due to this, and their apparent lack of chemistry with each other, they have begun to draw comparisons with Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard - both favourably and unfavourably.

Lampard and Gerrard were two of the best players of their respective eras - not just for England, but in the world. However, they shared very similar roles for their respective clubs of Liverpool and Chelsea - due to this, they would often get in each other’s way when playing together on the international stage.

While Foden and Bellingham do not have this exact problem, as they do not cancel each other out, the question remains - how can you make them both work simultaneously?

Sadly, with a system such as England’s, it will be difficult to pull off. When playing for City, Foden is allowed to drift centrally very often, due to how fluidly Pep Guardiola allows his players to function - this is not the case for England, who play much more rigidly.

Additionally, Gareth Southgate cannot play them both as central midfielders, as neither of them are particularly defensively-minded. Bellingham has no problems with getting his hands dirty, but his creative influence and goalscoring ability will be greatly diminished if he is forced to take on extra defensive responsibilities. Our answer? Find a way to bring Guardiola on board.