Blues boss Paul Lambert says young right-back Dylan Crowe, who recently signed his first professional deal with the club, is some way from being ready for his first team squad.

The 18-year-old, who has been capped by England at U15, U16, U17 and U18 levels, was reportedly the subject of interest from a number of bigger clubs - Celtic, Huddersfield, RB Leipzig, Arsenal, Manchester United, Brighton, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Benfica were all linked - and looked set to leave Portman Road, however, a move ultimately never materialised and last month he penned a contract which runs until 2022 with the club having an option for a further year.

“I think Dylan wanted to go in the first place and then something’s happened, it fell through and he ended up re-signing here,” Lambert said.

“I pretty sure the club don’t want to get scolded again where maybe some young players leave and they get sold on like the lads we just mentioned [Matt Clarke, Adam Webster and Tyrone Mings]. I’m pretty sure you don’t want that to keep happening to you.”

Could he come into his thoughts as the season progresses? “No, he’s not ready for that. Dylan’s not ready for that, dear oh dear, it’s too big a jump for that. He’s not quite ready for that.

“Maybe in the future, nobody really knows, but I’m not sure he’s quite ready for that at the minute.”

Meanwhile, he says on-trial Barry Cotter and Aaron Drinan will benefit from playing senior games with Swedish second-tier side GAIS if they end up joining them on loan.

“I think the lads are out there for a few days just to see how it goes and how it feels,” he said. “The club sanctioned that.

“You only get experience by playing, whether it’s in England or in Sweden or wherever, you’ve got to play games.”

Photo: TWTD

iaintaylorx added 13:10 - Aug 2 I feel Lambert doesn't like this lad for some reason, I just get that vibe. He sounds like a promising talent, but you don't need to say all that “dear oh dear” stuff, if he “isn't ready”?
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algarvefan added 08:34 - Aug 3 I guess we all have 'off' days and I think Lambert had one yesterday. Poor timing.
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