Teenage international Lewis Cooks admits it will be a real honour lining up for England in the Under-17s Algarve Tournament next week.

The 17–year-old, who already has honours at England youth level, is in the squad which heads to Portugal next week for the prestigious tournament.

“I got told a week and a half ago about being selected,” said Lewis, who has been with the United Academy since the age of seven.

“It’s against Holland, Portugal and Germany. I’ve played against them before but I’m really excited to get stuck into the heavyweights. I’ve been away a few times with England and it’s good. You feel a real honour.

“You get a bit more time on the ball than maybe in the Under-21s. The aim is to try and play as many games as I can and win as many as we can.”

Lewis’ farewell game before heading off on international was Monday’s Development Squad game against Huddersfield when he was handed the captain’s armband for the 2-0 defeat.

“We’re doing well,” said Lewis. “We just needed a win on Monday to push nearer the top places, but they had a good side out.

“We played well. We had a good solid shape, and we just needed an end product. I enjoyed captaining the side. It was a bit of a surprise, but was really good.”

Lewis, a first year scholar at the club, played regular Under-18s football last season, and he’s seamlessly made the step up to playing Under-21s football as well this term.

“Under-21s games are more physical, but you have to deal with that,” he said. “It’s good for you. I just want to try and push on as much as I can and get near the first team. Sam Byram and Alex Mowatt have worked hard and pushed on, and they’ve got there.

“I want to try and keep playing, and working hard, and push myself on.”