THE TOXIC HYPE: HOW THE MEDIA’S OBSESSION WITH PHIL FODEN MASKS THE RACIAL SCAPEGOATING OF ENGLAND’S TRUE STARS
The narrative of English football is one built on passionate tribalism, soaring aspirations, and, increasingly, a toxic media climate that warps perception and divides the public. At the centre of the current storm is Phil Foden, the generational talent from Manchester City, perpetually described as the greatest English prospect since Wayne Rooney. Yet, a closer, more forensic examination of his career—and, more importantly, the careers of his brilliant, scrutinised contemporaries—reveals a profoundly unsettling truth: the relentless, almost desperate media adoration of Foden is symptomatic of a deeper, more corrosive issue of racial bias at the heart of the English game.
The Myth and the Metrics: Why Foden’s Crown is Fragile
The clamour to label Foden a once-in-a-generation player is incessant, a chorus sung by pundits who appear determined to place him on an untouchable pedestal. However, when his statistical output is placed next to his peers, the narrative begins to crumble. The cold, hard metrics present a difficult challenge to the prevailing sentiment. Consider the data:
Jude Bellingham: Foden’s statistics, when lined up against Bellingham’s, appear almost secondary. Bellingham, nearly three and a half years his junior, has already achieved a global impact that Foden is still chasing.
Bukayo Saka and Cole Palmer: Comparisons against Saka (a year older) and Palmer (almost two years younger) also reveal that Foden’s output is not decisively superior.
Crucially, Foden is no longer the raw, unproven talent demanding patience. He will turn 26 before the next World Cup, making him the oldest of the quartet, ahead of Saka, Palmer, and the significantly younger Bellingham. To continuously frame him as a “young promising talent” is an act of deliberate media delusion designed to shield him from the critical accountability his peers face.
The Barren International Landscape
The disconnect between Foden’s club form and his international impact is perhaps the most glaring piece of evidence against the hype. For all the talk of his genius, Foden’s contribution in major tournaments has been worryingly sparse.
In the European Championships of 2024, and before that in 2021, Foden failed to register a single goal or an assist. His goal contribution remains stubbornly absent in any Euros or World Cup game where the outcome was still in doubt. In fact, it has been over 800 days since Foden last scored a goal for the national team in a game that England was not already winning—an astonishing drought for a player touted as a nation’s saviour.
Contrast this with his teammates:
Bellingham delivered a spectacular last-minute bicycle kick to secure a quarter-final spot in Euros 2024 and later assisted in the final.
Palmer, despite a paltry 30 minutes across the semi-final and final, assisted the winner in the semis and scored in the final.
Saka bagged a crucial 80th-minute equaliser to push England into the semis.
These are defining moments, the quintessential, heart-stopping plays that etch a player into national folklore. When the question is posed, “What is Foden’s England moment?” the silence is deafening.
The absurdity of the media’s protective apparatus was best demonstrated during a simple, innocuous play in a recent match. Following a successful goal from Eberechi Eze, the commentator and the media machine immediately focused not on the brilliance of Eze’s stunning strike, but on Foden’s preceding four-metre pass. The pass, described with breathless exaggeration as having “perfect weight,” was credited as the “key” to the goal, eclipsing Eze’s phenomenal finish. Even Real Madrid and the Bundesliga’s official social media accounts could not resist mocking the transparent, almost embarrassing attempt to divert praise towards Foden.
‘Pep’s Lad’: The System Player
The underlying issue for Foden is not a lack of talent, but a profound dependence on a specific, unique style of play. As his teammates nicknamed him, Foden is ‘Pep’s Lad’—a project entirely tailored and raised by Pep Guardiola for the intricate, possession-based system at Manchester City.
For 21 years at the club and a decade as a professional, Foden has internalised one footballing language. As pundits themselves have observed, “he knows that system like the back of his hand” at City, which only reinforces the uncomfortable truth: Foden is a system player.
This designation is not a criticism of his club contribution; indeed, his success at City is immense. However, it presents a significant hurdle in international football. National teams do not operate like club sides; they are “plug-and-play” entities that assemble for short periods. A player must be instantly adaptable. Foden, a player whose optimal role has even been debated within City (false nine, winger, middle), struggles to adjust to an England team managed by a coach, who, with all due respect, is far from a “Pep disciple.” He is a square peg being forced into a round hole, constantly requiring excuses and system adjustments that international football simply cannot afford.
The Elephant in the Room: A Nation Unready for a Black Superstar
The media’s intense focus on Foden, and its refusal to be realistic about his limitations, is merely the gentle side of a deeply polarised and prejudiced commentary landscape. The most devastating and necessary critique was delivered by Ian Wright, who, speaking on the Overlap podcast, cut straight to the core of the issue: “England is not ready for a black superstar.”
This quote is not hyperbolic; it is a painful summary of years of institutional bias and relentless, racially-charged scapegoating. The evidence is overwhelming and emotionally crushing.
The Scapegoat’s Burden
The moment of maximum racial tension came at the conclusion of the Euro 2020 final. After the missed penalties, the three players instantly arrested on social media and subjected to vile racist abuse were Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, and Bukayo Saka. Harry Kane also missed a penalty in the 2022 World Cup, but the torrent of abuse was overwhelmingly directed at Rashford. The pattern is clear: black players are held to a higher standard of flawless perfection, and when they falter, they are the first to be thrown to the wolves.
Jude Bellingham, the current best English player alongside Kane, has become the media’s new target for this treatment. He has been labelled “arrogant” and “disrespectful” for reactions of passion—like being visibly angry after a substitution while already on a yellow card—that would be hailed as ‘fire’ and ‘leadership’ in a white player. When his family was reportedly arrested at home during Euro 2024, preventing him from speaking to reporters, the focus of the media was not on the humanitarian crisis, but on his perceived ‘snub’ and the chance to blast his character. The media needs a “scapegoat,” a “bad guy,” and the evidence suggests this role is systematically reserved for the black superstar.
The Raheem Sterling Standard
No player exemplifies the viciousness of this scrutiny more than Raheem Sterling. His career became a target for relentless media harassment, where his every move was scrutinised and weaponised.
He was attacked for being “too flashy” with his money, yet simultaneously criticised for being “too cheap.”
He was lambasted for a perceived lack of cleanliness in his car, and his choice to tattoo a rifle on his leg—a deeply personal tribute to his father who died to gun violence—was grotesquely twisted into a scandal demanding his national team exclusion.
The media referred to him as a “love rat” for the simple act of proposing to his childhood girlfriend.
Compare this to Foden, who went through a rough patch in his career and was granted a compassionate reprieve by the media, who acknowledged he was dealing with “things going on off the pitch, mentally.” While Foden was protected, one can only imagine the additional, crushing pressure Sterling endured having to worry about the paparazzi turning his every personal choice into a hit piece.
The Sinister Economics of Outrage
The underlying reason for this deep-seated bias is rooted in the cynical economics of the modern media landscape. A PFA-sponsored study on racial bias in football commentary provided tangible proof: players of a darker complexion were seven times more likely to be referred to as “powerful” and three times more likely to be described as “fast,” yet 60% less likely to be the subject of any outright praise. The commentary uses coded language to reduce them to physical attributes while denying them the intellectual and emotional acclaim freely given to their white counterparts.
The entire industry, particularly the tabloid and sensationalist outlets, is demonstrably “rotten.” It no longer sells information; it sells outrage. By manufacturing controversy around the personal lives, the supposed ‘arrogance,’ and the perceived failures of young black stars, the media guarantees clicks, outrage, and engagement. Foden, in this context, becomes the media’s most valuable tool—the golden boy against whom all others are judged and, often, found wanting.
The tragedy of the “Phil Foden situation” is that Foden himself is not the problem; he appears to be a genuinely humble and immensely talented individual. But his elevation, and the constant special treatment he receives, only serves to intensify the negative attention and pressure directed towards him, while simultaneously serving as the acceptable counter-balance to the relentless, and often racially motivated, vilification of his extraordinary, yet constantly scrutinised, black teammates. The media has achieved its goal: the public is outraged, and the important conversation about systemic racism in the game is constantly obscured by manufactured hype.
Clive Russell as vengeful Arthur Mair in the Shetland series 10 ending (Credit: BBC One)
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Police arresting Ed Tulloch in Shetland (Credit: BBC)
Dale Moss/Credit: YouTube
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