Fulham academy chief Huw Jennings admits they're delighted with Patrick Roberts' call-up to the England U16 squad.

Roberts, who has been a key player for Mark Pembridge's Under-16s, made his England Under-16 debut last week in a 5-0 defeat of Northern Ireland in the Victory Shield.

Jennings is confident that Roberts' involvement can serve as a benchmark for our schoolboy hopefuls.

"I think it's a sign of how far we have come as an Academy - to see one of our younger players representing his country is absolutely fantastic," Jennings told fulhamfc.com. "As we know, our Under-18s have performed really well over recent seasons and have shown that they can compete with the best.

"Mark Pembridge works our Under-16 players extremely hard and in terms of preparing them for the step up, I think he deserves a lot of credit. He will be pleased with Patrick's involvement and perhaps we will see two or three more follow in his footsteps.

"We have some very talented players further down in the Academy, and this can only serve to motivate them. However, as always, it's crucial for them to understand the importance of working hard and in Patrick's case, realise that this is just the first step."