Steve McManaman has addressed rumours linking Todd Cantwell with a switch to Liverpool, insisting the Norwich starlet is not quite ready to play at such a high level.
Cantwell rose through the youth ranks at Carrow Road before graduating to the senior squad in 2017, and has since racked up 55 appearances across all competitions for the club.
The 21-year-old played a key role during the Canaries' run to Championship glory last season, and has been able to transfer that form into the Premier League.
The English playmaker has scored six goals in 26 top-flight matches for Norwich, earning plenty of praise from fans and experts in the process.
Cantwell has already played for his country at Under-21 level, and it has been suggested he could earn a place in the Gareth Southgate's set-up if he continues on his current trajectory.
The Norwich talisman is reportedly the subject of interest from a number of top clubs ahead of the summer transfer window, including Liverpool, who have been tipped to launch a £30 million ($39m) bid for his services.
McManaman, however, believes it is far too early for Cantwell to complete such a high-profile transfer, given the fact he has only one season of Premier League experience under his belt.
“In the future possibly, but I don’t think he’s done enough yet to warrant playing at that level,” the former Liverpool ace wrote of Cantwell in his latest column for HorseRacing.net.
“I get the fact that he wants to play at a higher level. I get the fact that he thinks he’s playing well in a struggling Norwich team. That’s completely understandable.
“It would surprise me if Liverpool were very interested in him, considering the younger kids Liverpool have in and around the squad at that Under-23 level.
“Again, we will wait and see. I can only take on face value what I’ve seen of Todd Cantwell and he’s done well in various games.
“Norwich has a lot of really good young players and have done for a number of years so you have to trust what they’re doing down at Carrow Road.”
Cantwell played the full 90 minutes of Norwich's clash with Liverpool at Carrow Road last weekend, which Daniel Farke's side were unlucky to lose 1-0.
The result saw the Canaries remain seven points adrift of safety at the bottom of the league, with a tough trip to Molineux to face Wolves up next on Sunday.
Liverpool, meanwhile, are due back in action at home to West Ham on Monday, where they will be looking to bounce back from a midweek Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid.
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