Wales boss Chris Coleman has dismissed suggestions that he handed a debut call-up to Liverpool youngster Ben Woodburn just to ward off England's interest in the player.

The 17-year-old, who was born in Nottingham, qualifies for the Welsh national team through his mother's grandfather and has represented the Dragons at youth levels.

Woodburn's recent exploits for the Reds have attracted interest from England, however, now it appears that he could make his Wales senior debut in the crucial World Cup qualifier against the Republic of Ireland next Friday.

"Ben has been in our system for five years since he was 13. We won't cap him because we are worried about him playing for anyone else – we expect him to be a Wales player going forward," said Coleman.

"He has burst onto the scene, everyone has started talking about him and everyone is telling us to cap him to keep him. But that's not the way to do it. I'm not looking at this game as a chance to cap him, I'm just looking for the best squad.

"If Ben wanted to go and play for England there is nothing we can do about it. They aren't our players, they are contracted to their clubs and can make their own decisions."

"I haven't been getting as excited as everyone else about Ben because his progress has been no surprise to me because I've been looking at him for the past five years," added Coleman.

"Ben has been playing for Wales since he was a young boy. Without young players like him and Tom Lawrence and Tom Bradshaw, where would Welsh football be?

"That's why it is so important to build on what we've achieved and we need to keep on improving our facilities and our coaches."