Phil Foden emerged as the hero for Manchester City, scoring a stunning stoppage-time winner to secure a dramatic 3-2 victory over a resilient Leeds United at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday. The England international, who has rediscovered his best form, declared after the match that he is ready to shoulder leadership responsibility and ease the goalscoring pressure on Erling Haaland.
Foden Steps Up as Leader
Following his match-winning performance, the 25-year-old midfielder revealed a newfound maturity in his game. Foden stated he now considers himself one of the leaders on the pitch for Pep Guardiola's side, even if he doesn't wear the captain's armband.
"I'm just feeling better about my game. I would say I've become more mature," Foden explained. "I think now I'm one of the leaders as well, maybe not as a captain, but on the pitch. I have the hunger inside me. I managed to score two crucial goals to help us win the game. That's the kind of player I want to be – deciding games and trying to be the player that people look to to try and make a difference."
A Rollercoaster Encounter at the Etihad
The match began in spectacular fashion for the home side, with Foden volleying City into the lead after just 59 seconds. Defender Josko Gvardiol then extended their advantage during a dominant first-half display, seemingly putting City in control.
However, Leeds staged a remarkable second-half comeback. Substitute Dominic Calvert-Lewin pulled a goal back for the visitors, before former City academy product Lukas Nmecha levelled the scores from a penalty rebound after Gvardiol had fouled Calvert-Lewin in the area.
With Leeds and their under-pressure manager Daniel Farke looking set to earn a valuable point, Foden popped up with a late winner in stoppage time to secure all three points for City and condemn Leeds to their sixth defeat in seven games.
Sharing the Goalscoring Burden
Foden's brace proved particularly valuable on a day when star striker Erling Haaland, who was chasing his 100th Premier League goal, was kept quiet by the Leeds defence. City have relied heavily on the prolific Norwegian, who has netted 14 league goals already this season.
Foden emphasised the need for other players to contribute, saying: "If I look over the pitch, we've got loads of goalscorers but, for whatever reason, it's not really kicked off yet. It can't just come from Erling every game. When he's fully marked out the game, other players have to step up."
Despite the victory, Foden acknowledged areas for improvement, warning: "In the end, we managed to nick it. We have to work on things and get things better because when the opponents get better in the later stages of the season, we can't afford to come out like this because we're going to lose the league."
The match was not without controversy, with Leeds manager Daniel Farke suggesting that City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma went down with a "fake injury" at 2-1, allowing opposite number Pep Guardiola to make decisive tactical changes.
Nevertheless, Farke found positives in his team's performance, stating: "They should take lots of lots of pride and lots of confidence out of it. After so many sucker punches and against such a good side, to show such a performance should give us lots of belief."
This performance continues Foden's excellent return to form after his struggles last season, having also scored twice against Borussia Dortmund, played a starring role in the defeat of Liverpool, and earned a recall to the England squad in recent weeks.
