It has been quite the rise for Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount in recent months.
After impressing on loan at Derby County in the Championship last season, the 20-year-old midfielder has shone for Frank Lampard's Blues so far this campaign, with four goals in 11 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea .
He also made two substitute appearances for England last month, but is in line to make his first start this evening (Friday) against Czech Republic, with Mount likely to start ahead of Blues' team-mate Ross Barkley.
And ahead of the European Championships qualifier, England boss Gareth Southgate has spoken about what impressed him about Mount, who added he has been tracking Mount for four years.
“Exactly what I thought of him when I saw him playing for our Under-16s. He’s a quality player, an intelligent footballer, presses well, has a real eye for goal, good quality. So, nothing I’ve seen surprises me at all," Southgate said, as quoted by the Telegraph .
“We’ve had him marked as a player from the first time I saw him at St George’s Park. Chelsea would be the same on that, I think, but of course he’s now been able to have the opportunity to play in the Premier League and display that against top teams. I think you saw his penalty in the Super Cup, that was a nice cameo of what he’s about, really.”
But Mount is not the only Chelsea player in Gareth Southgate's squad for the games with Czech Republic and Bulgaria, with the 20-year-old joined by club mates Fikayo Tomori, Barkley and Tammy Abraham.
And Southgate has been full of praise for the Blues and the young players coming through during Frank Lampard's time in charge.
“I think I’ve spoken for a couple of years now about the quality of young players coming through our academies,” said Southgate.
“Chelsea have been at the forefront of that, winning the Uefa Youth League and FA Youth Cup consistently. So it’s a shame, maybe, one or two of their youngsters didn’t get that opportunity and have had to go and play elsewhere and might have missed that moment that has been perfect for the likes of Tammy and Mason."
