Former Blue Matt Holland has backed striker Connor Wickham to follow in the footsteps of Kieron Dyer, Darren Bent and Richard Wright and play for England. The ex-skipper spent time working with Wickham at Town’s academy last season.
Writing in his blog for the Football League’s website, Holland says Wickham has what it takes to go a long way in football: "He's got an incredibly large build, possesses a lovely touch on the ball and has two good feet. If he can prove that he's a natural goalscorer too, which I believe he will, then Connor is destined to go to the very top.
"If I had to compare him to someone it would be Dean Ashton perhaps, but at the age of 16 he's still got so much development to come that it's impossible to say how he will end up.
”So many England U16 stars fail to make the grade so it's wise to heed a little caution but I do suspect that Connor Wickham will be one that doesn't fall by the wayside.
"He's playing for a manager that's keen to nurture him and he's with a club that has a superb reputation at developing young players, so the odds are stacked in his favour. He also happens to have bundles of natural talent.
”I was speaking to Northampton Town manager Ian Sampson earlier this week and he was raving about the boy. He'd seen him score a hat-trick against his reserve team and said he was outstanding from start to finish. To be able to do that at his age marks him out as someone special that could be the real deal.
”Will he be a future England centre forward? I'd hate to put that kind of pressure on him but I wouldn't bet against it. He's right up there with the likes of Kieron Dyer, Richard Wright and Darren Bent who went on to play for England after starting life at Portman Road.”