England boss Gareth Southgate impressed with Wolves defender Conor Coady

By Darren Plant, Senior Reporter | 25 April 2018

England boss Gareth Southgate says that Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Conor Coady is capable of playing himself into contention for an England debut.

England boss Gareth Southgate has challenged Conor Coady to continue his recent progress by making an impact for Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League.

Coady has spent the season playing in the middle of a back three for the West Midlands outfit, who have already been crowned as winners of the Championship.

The 25-year-old represented England between Under-16 and Under-20 level, and Southgate has acknowledged that the former Liverpool man has an opportunity to play himself into his thoughts next season.

Southgate told the Express & Star: "All the signs this year have been really good for him. The nice thing with all of these young players is that I know them. I met Conor a number of times before I was working with the Under-21s.

"I was head of elite development and Conor was part of our junior teams and I remember when he was at Liverpool he won an award. His personality and his character is outstanding. He is certainly someone that, mentality-wise, fits into the way we like to work.

"The challenge now for him is to step up to the Premier League and to be able to continue to play as he has for Wolves this year at the next level."

Coady's only Premier League appearance for Liverpool came as an 89th-minute substitute in the 3-1 win over Fulham in May 2013.