Bukayo Saka: Phil Foden Hails Arsenal Star’s ‘Unbelievable Talent’ After Hat-Trick for England
Phil Foden has hailed the “unbelievable talent” of Arsenal star Bukayo Saka, after the 21-year-old scored a superb hat-trick for England in their 7-0 rout of North Macedonia. The Manchester City midfielder believes Saka can still improve further for club and country.
Saka’s Hat-Trick Performance
Saka stole the show at Old Trafford on Monday night, with Harry Kane netting twice, while Marcus Rashford and Kalvin Phillips also got on the scoresheet. It was Saka who made the biggest impact, though, with a brilliant hat-trick, taking his international tally to 11 goals in 28 caps for his country.
Foden’s Praise for Saka
Foden is thoroughly impressed with his Three Lions teammate and believes the winger is not only an immense talent right now, but can improve still further for club and country. ‘He’s amazing, an unbelievable talent and the thing is I think he can keep getting even better,’ said Foden. ‘He’s a great talent to have and hopefully he’s one for the future.’
Gareth Southgate’s Verdict on Saka
Asked whether Saka is now playing at an elite level, Southgate said: ‘I think he’s there. When he broke into the team at Arsenal, what struck us was that in a team that were having a difficult time he was performing at a really high level. Then when the team were playing well he was still a key player and performing at a really high level. So, that says a lot about his mentality, his ability to deal with pressure and that’s the environment that we’re in all the time. He’s exceptional to work with.’
England’s Dominant Win
On the dominant win in European Championship qualifying, Foden said: ‘I thought the lads did brilliant today. The aim was to go into the game and finish the season on a high and I thought we dominated from minute one and controlled the whole game. It’s quality players, the team spirit is there and we’ve got players who win now, win trophies. We’re going in the right direction and playing brilliant football at the moment.’
Conclusion
Bukayo Saka has cemented his place in the England starting XI under Gareth Southgate and is now being praised by his teammates for his incredible talent and ability to perform under pressure. Phil Foden believes Saka can still improve further for club and country, while Southgate has praised his mentality and ability to deal with pressure. England put in a dominant performance against North Macedonia and are now looking forward to their next European Championship qualifier.