Wayne Rooney believed that Phil Foden's stoppage-time appearance in Manchester City's 2-0 win in the EFL Cup final against Arsenal felt like a "charity" substitution. 

Nico O'Reilly's quickfire brace in the second half saw City lift their ninth title in the competition and first since they defeated Tottenham at Wembley Stadium back in 2021. 

With the Citizens cruising heading into stoppage time, Foden was brought on in the 90th minute in place of Rayan Cherki in what was City's only change on Sunday. 

Since the turn of the year, Foden has struggled for game time at City, starting just 10 of his 17 appearances in all competitions, totalling to just 830 minutes of action on the pitch. 

The signing of Antoine Semenyo in January has also pushed Foden further down the pecking order, with both Savinho and Cherki preferred to the England international of late. 

Speaking on the BBC's Wayne Rooney Show, the former Manchester United forward said: "I felt sad for him, but not sad because he is coming on in a cup final.

"There was a game a few days ago when he didn't even get on the pitch. If that was Max Dowman coming on at the end, you would think good experience.

"But to see Phil Foden coming on in a cup final, it felt like a charity sub to get him on the pitch.

"I don't know what has happened, he is a top player. It feels strange he can't get anywhere near the team. It feels like something has gone on there.

"I thought Foden was in good form but all of a sudden, we haven't seen him get any minutes.

"Firstly, he would be pleased they won the cup, but from a selfish point of view, he would have wanted to be out there and have an influence. That will be a tough one for him."

Foden himself acknowledged the difficulties he has faced this season, having registered just 10 goals and five assists in 41 outings across all competitions. 

"Football sometimes is not straightforward," Foden said after the victory over the Gunners.

"There are ups and downs, and sometimes you can't be the best version of yourself and that's the way it is.

"It's just about how you pick yourself back up. I'm still keeping my head down, trying to train as well as I can every day.

"Hopefully I come back after the internationals a lot sharper and hopefully I can get more minutes and be back to where I was at the start of the season."