Mount and Foden will do damage together for England at Euro 2020, says Joe cole

Joe Cole has backed Mason Mount and Phil Foden to 'do some damage together' for England at Euro 2020 - as the two stars prepare to go head-to-head in Saturday's Champions League final.

Chelsea's Mount, 22, and Manchester City's Foden, 21, have both enjoyed exceptional seasons and now have a huge few weeks ahead for club and country.

After the European football showpiece in Porto, they will report for England duty with both expected to play a major role in Gareth Southgate's team.

And ex-England midfielder Cole believes we should be celebrating the emergence of two such technically-gifted players who could inspire the national team to long overdue tournament success.

'They are both incredible players,' Cole said. 'I have been fortunate enough to work with Mason in the Chelsea academy and spend some time with him so I have seen up close how good he is.

'Phil I have admired for many, many years from watching him play for England under-17s.

'They are both peas in a pod in the sense they have everything - they can dribble, they can find the killer pass, they attack and play in multiple positions.

'I think they are a shoo-in, the pair of them, to start for Gareth and I think they will be pivotal parts.

'We are lucky to have them and it's great to go into a Champions League final with all these great players on the pitch and the two brightest sparks are two, technically-gifted England players.

'It shows how far we have come with our academy systems and the way things are done.

'They're both great players, we shouldn't compare them, we should just be privileged they are both English and they're going to do some damage together at the Euros, I'm pretty sure of that.'

Mount, who has proved himself capable of playing in virtually any midfield position, has scored nine goals and contributed eight assists for Chelsea this season, scoring in the Champions League semi-final, second leg win over Real Madrid.

Foden has added the Premier League and the Carabao Cup to his already impressive medal collection after scoring 16 times and setting up a further 10 for City.

He was excellent in both legs of City's quarter-final tie with Borussia Dortmund and, like Mount, has a golden opportunity now to win Europe's premier competition at a young age.

Cole, who played 56 times for England, believes the pair's natural ability makes them superior to the likes of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in the country's much-vaunted 'Golden Generation.'

'Our systems produced a certain type of player but we changed the system and now we are producing a player that is better equipped to win at international level,' he said.

'Tactically, they are better than us, the coaching and development has improved 10 fold. Are they mature enough now to go and win a tournament? That is the question.'

Cole believes City begin Saturday night's final as favourites as they look to emulate Chelsea's maiden Champions League success in 2012 as a member of European football's nouveau riche.

'It's a fair comparison. No doubt there will be people at City who will be feeling a lot more pressure to win it than at Chelsea,' he said.

'Chelsea have got over that hurdle and won it. It took them a long time because it's not easy and certain things need to go for you.

'The team that won it in 2012, that was the year it was destined to be for Chelsea. For City, we will find out by 11pm on Saturday night.

'I am sure there is so much emphasis on winning it at Man City, they go into it holding the pressure if you like, more than Chelsea.'

BT Sport will show Manchester City vs Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League final live from 6:00pm on Saturday 29th May. Whoever you watch the final with, watch it together with BT. For more info go to btsport.com/final