Pep Guardiola Says Man City's Phil Foden Will Be Important 'For the Next Decade'

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said Phil Foden will be an important player at the club "for the next decade" after he made his full Premier League debut on Wednesday. 

Foden started for the first time in his 16th appearance in England's top flight as the Sky Blues beat Cardiff City 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium.

Guardiola recognised the competition the midfielder has for game time at City but said he's set to play a greater role in the near future, per the Press Association's Ian Parker (h/t MailOnline):

"It's not easy for him with [David] Silva, Bernardo [Silva], [Ilkay] Gundogan, [Kevin] De Bruyne, but he wants to be here. He's delighted to be here.

"I assure you next year he will play more minutes. That's the process. He's 18 or 19. For the next decade he will be important."

Foden put in a strong performance and forced two good saves from Cardiff goalkeeper Neil Etheridge.

Guardiola was pleased with what he saw and where the 18-year-old is at in terms of his development:

"Phil, we know it, he's young but he can do everything. He can create chances, he's incredible with his vision. We can count on them and that's good.

"Every day he is in the locker room, he is part of the group and we trust him.

"I'm happy with the way he plays. He's at a good level. He could have scored two goals, he's exceptional."

Foden was frustrated not to have got on the scoresheet but was pleased to make his first start:

Kevin De Bruyne lashed home from a tight angle to give the Sky Blues the lead inside six minutes, while Leroy Sane rifled in a low effort shortly before half-time.

In the second half, Etheridge kept out Foden in a one-on-one and stopped a venomous long-range effort from the youngster, who also hit the post.

Etheridge also denied the midfielder an assist when he kept out Aymeric Laporte's header after the midfielder had picked him out well with a cross.

Foden played the full 90 minutes on Wednesday. His longest previous outing in the Premier League was 21 minutes.

Scouted Football offered some insight into his performance:

Grup 14's Rafael Hernandez was also impressed:

City, who have already won the Carabao Cup this season, remain in the hunt for three more trophies.

They are one point ahead of Liverpool in the league with six matches remaining. They take on Brighton & Hove Albion in the FA Cup semi-finals on Saturday, and they will play Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

As such, the Cardiff clash was the first of eight matches they are set to play in April.

While Guardiola will be desperate to win them all to keep their hopes of a quadruple alive, he will need to rotate to manage his best players' fitness in the coming weeks.

That should present more opportunities for Foden, and if the Englishman can continue to impress, he could play an important part in their run-in.