Claude Puel backs James Maddison to make his England debut this season after bright Premier League start

Maddison completed a £24m move from Norwich to Leicester in the summer

Claude Puel has backed James Maddison to earn his first England cap this season after a good start in the Premier League.

The 21-year-old joined Leicester from Norwich for £24million and scored his first goal for the Foxes during their 2-0 win against Wolves.

England manager Gareth Southgate watched him in Leicester’s opening 2-1 defeat against Manchester United and will name his squad for their first Uefa Nations League match against Spain and a friendly against Switzerland, which will be held in Leicester, next week.

“James has a modern style and I hope he becomes an international player for the future,” said Puel. "He has the quality but for the moment he needs to be focused, to keep the concentration with his club.

James Maddison made his under-21 England debut last year (Getty)

“He is at the beginning of his career and we’ll continue to develop him. I hope, like a lot of his teammates, it will be a good reference for the national team.”

Leicester’s Harry Maguire had a starring role at the World Cup and Jamie Vardy travelled to Russia as part of Southgate’s squad.

Maddison, however. is relatively inexperienced on the international scene and represented England for the first time in November 2017 when he played against Ukraine as part of the under-21 side.

He was named Norwich’s player of the season last year and his 15 league goals attracted interest from several Premier League teams but he signed a five-year deal with the Foxes.

“Maddison was a young player and a lot of teams wanted him,” added Puel. “It was a good opportunity for us and him to come and make good progress.

“When I spoke to him I tried to give him the truth. I like to analyse the player to give him my feelings and feedback and to ask questions about his feeling about his play.

“I like to introduce the project of the club and when we look at Leicester it’s a club which develops young players.”

Leicester face Puel’s former side Southampton this weekend and will be without Jamie Vardy, who begins the first of his three match suspension for his red card against Wolves.