Ethan Ampadu has been backed to pass his German test – even though the Wales midfielder has yet to play a single minute for RB Leipzig.
The vote of confidence has come from Amapdu’s Wales teammate Joe Allen who insists Ampadu will soon make his debut at the Bundesliga club.
The 18-year-old left Chelsea on a season-long loan, but has so far been overlooked by manager Julian Nagelsmann, whose judgement is hard to question as Leipzig are currently top of the table in Germany and the only club with maximum points from three matches.
Ampadu did not feature in his new club’s German Cup tie, either, against Osnabruck, which they also won – but he did shine for Wales in their vital 1-0 win over Azerbaijan last weekend.
Stoke City midfielder Allen – who played alongside Ampadu last Friday – said: “It’s early in the season, so I’m sure he will break into their team, even though they are a top side and they have started the season well.
“He will play a big part for them and I’m sure he will enjoy the experience of being out there.
“His influence for us is no surprise. We have seen him perform so many times now for Wales.
“He came on the scene at such a young age. But despite being so young, he has got so much experience in other ways.”
Wales’ victory over Azerbaijan has left them back in fourth place in Group E of their Euro 2020 campaign, but with a game in hand on the teams above them.
It means the next two matches in October – away to Slovakia and then at home to Croatia – are likely to be pivotal in Wales’ campaign and Allen is hopeful the three-point gap to Hungary can quickly be reeled in.
He has also insisted there are high standards being set by under pressure manager Ryan Giggs.
“We are trying to bridge the gap on those sides who have made a better start than us,” added Allen.
“There is a high standard throughout the squad and training has been at a high level.
“The summer was tough with two away fixtures but we were hugely disappointed not to have got anything from them.
“We are now looking forward and we’ll try and get as many points as we possibly can. We have won our two home games and maybe we can now put a little bit of pressure on the other teams in the group.”
