Phil Foden says he is moving “in the right direction” but still has plenty of work to do to rediscover his best form after his hat-trick helped Manchester City beat AEK Athens 5-1.
The 24-year-old scored three times at Etihad Stadium and also provided an assist, becoming only the third English player to achieve that combination in a Champions League match.
Wayne Rooney previously did so for Manchester United against Fenerbahce in September 2004, while Raheem Sterling recorded the feat for Manchester City against Atalanta in October 2019.
Elliot Anderson put Manchester City ahead after 12 minutes. Foden then linked up with Rico Lewis to make it 2-0 shortly before half-time, just before referee Willy Delajod brought the opening period to an end.
AEK Athens pulled a goal back seven minutes into the second half through Stavros Pilios, but Rayan Cherki’s individual effort quickly restored Manchester City’s two-goal advantage.
Foden completed his hat-trick with two goals in the space of 11 minutes, combining with Lewis again for the third. He has now scored in successive appearances for the club after going 35 matches without finding the net.
Before facing AEK Athens, Foden had produced only three goal involvements – one goal and two assists – in seven appearances in all competitions this season. He took centre stage with Erling Haaland left on the bench.
It was Manchester City’s first Champions League hat-trick since March 2023, when Haaland scored five against RB Leipzig.
“Slowly, but surely,” Foden told TNT Sports when asked whether he was returning to his best. “Still got a long way to go, but I’m going in the right direction.
“Scoring along the way definitely helps. I just want to keep working hard and trying to be the best I can for the manager and the team.
“I enjoyed that a lot. The lads were great again. We showed determination again. It wasn’t pretty at times.
“I thought we stuck at the gameplan, we kept going and in the end we broke them down.”
Foden’s inconsistent form over the past two seasons meant he was not selected in Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad this summer, with England eventually finishing third.
However, Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca said he had always recognised Foden’s ability since replacing Pep Guardiola this summer.
“I’ve said since day one, I consider him one of the best English players,” Maresca told a news conference.
“For different reasons in the last three years he was not good enough, but I know how good he is so I’m trying to help him because we are sure he is going to help us this season.”
The victory was Maresca’s 10th in 12 matches in all competitions this season. He is one of six managers in the Premier League era, which began in 1992-93, to reach 10 wins in their first 12 games with a club.
The others are Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea, who did so in 12 matches, Pep Guardiola at Manchester City in 10, Unai Emery at Arsenal in 12, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United in 11 and Arne Slot at Liverpool in 11.
More significantly, Manchester City responded to their 4-2 home defeat by defending champions Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
At the age of 24 years and 63 days, Maresca also named Manchester City’s youngest-ever line-up in a Champions League match. He praised three academy players who made their debuts in what he described as a “complete” display.
“For the academy, I think there are three players from the academy that made their debut tonight, so it is nice news for the academy and for the club,” he said.
“It was not easy, especially after the PSG game. So we had two games, Ipswich and today that we needed to win and, yes, we did our job.”
Maresca admitted Manchester City could have defended better for AEK’s goal and scored more, but was pleased with the contribution of players who had not been receiving regular minutes.
“To be honest, it is the best feeling for any manager when you make many changes, but at the end the performance is good, so happy for especially them.”
