JACK GREALISH has defended Gareth Southgate and insists the England boss has NO problem with Phil Foden.
Foden, 22, has been in red-hot form for Man City this term with eight goals and three assists in 20 appearances.
The attacker came off the bench as England thrashed Iran 6-2 in their opening group game but Southgate was highly-criticised by fans and pundits alike for not introducing him during Friday’s drab goalless draw with USA.
Victory would have secured the Three Lions’ place in the last-16 with a game to spare but they struggled to create any clear cut chances against the Americans.
And that has intensified the calls for Foden to start Tuesday’s clash against Wales.
Southgate’s failure to bring Foden on has led to speculation over the relationship between the manager and Foden.
But fellow City and England star Grealish has moved quickly to deny those suggestions as he drew on his own past experiences.
Grealish told BBC Sport: “People always used to say, ‘Ah, he’s got a problem with Jack’ last year or two years ago, and then I come on and it’s like, ‘Oh, he likes Jack now, who is it next?’.
“And then I know people were saying, ‘He doesn’t like Madders (James Maddison)’ and now Madders is in, so it’s fine with him, and then Phil didn’t play, so it’s like, ‘He’s got a problem with Phil’.
“He hasn’t got a problem with anyone. He speaks to all of us the same.
HOW TO GET FREE BETS ON THE WORLD CUP
“If you’re not playing – Phil didn’t play the other night – he’s still the same with Phil as he is with me, when I came on, or Harry Kane.
“He’s not got a problem with anyone. If he did have a problem with someone, you’d know about it.”
Grealish also defended Southgate after many criticised his use of the huge attacking talent at his disposal.
He said: “You look at our attack and I’m not going to sit here and be big-headed and say we’ve got the best attack in the tournament, but it’s certainly up there.
“You look at the seven or eight attacking players we have and everyone brings different stuff to the game, so it is difficult for the manager sometimes.”
