Phil Foden temporarily leaves England’s Euro 2024 camp for urgent family issue
Southgate reacts to 'angry' England fans throwing pint glasses at him
Phil Foden has left the England squad in Euro 2024 to return to the United Kingdom because of an urgent family issue.
The Manchester City winger, who featured in last night’s goalless draw with Slovenia, may be at risk of missing Sunday’s last-16 tie in Gelsenkirchen.
The FA did not confirm if and when Foden will come back to Germany.
Foden has started all three of England’s games as they won Group C, hitting the post in the 1-1 draw with Denmark.
If he is not available for the knockout stages, Anthony Gordon and Eberechi Eze could be in contention to replace him on the left.
A statement from the FA said: “Phil Foden has temporarily left the England camp and returned to the UK for a pressing family matter.”
Foden, who scored 27 goals for City last season and was voted Footballer of the Year, has four goals in 37 caps for England.
The Three Lions finished top of Group C on Tuesday evening, though another underwhelming performance saw Gareth Southgate come under fire.
England fans booed their team and threw cups towards Southgate in frustration, with the manager left frustrated by the “unusual environment” surrounding his team in Germany.
“I understand it,” Southgate said when asked about the reaction from the England fans. “I’m not going to back away from it. The most important thing is that the supporters stay with the team.
“I understand the narrative towards me and that’s better for the team if [criticism] is towards me and not them, but it’s creating an unusual environment for us to operate in.
“I’ve not seen similar [reactions] towards the other teams who have qualified. I’m proud with how the players are handling it.”
When asked further about what was “different” about the environment around the England team, Southgate said: “The expectation. We’ve made England fun again and it’s been enjoyable for the players. We have to be very careful that it remains that way.”