Boothroyd impressed by City star Maddison ahead of England U21s’ qualifier in Ukraine

England Under-21s boss Aidy Boothroyd has hailed the technical ability of Norwich City star James Maddison.

The Canaries playmaker is hoping to make his U21 debut during a qualifier in Ukraine tomorrow (4pm).

“I’ve been very impressed with James Maddison,” former Canaries academy coach Boothroyd said.

“He’s done really well. He’s a great example of somebody who might not be physically frightening but his technical ability and his brain are really impressive on a football pitch so we’ve been really pleased with him.

“We watch lots of games, we see them playing at their own clubs. Sometimes when you’ve got two or three players who’ve been with you in previous age groups it’s nice to bring them back in and see how they’re doing.

“I’d like to be able to pick a squad of 40 just to get a better look but you can’t always do that.

“He was only 14 when I was at Coventry – mind you, with the job I had at Coventry, perhaps I should have brought him into the team a bit earlier, I might still be there!”