Speaking to goal.com, Fulham’s Sone Aluko has praised his teammate Ryan Sessegnon, but insisted if the teenager is to continue his development he must be playing first-team football, wherever he finds himself at the end of the summer.

Sessegnon broke onto the scene at the start of the 2016/17 campaign, and made 26 appearances in the Sky Bet Championship for Fulham, scoring five league goals.

The 17-year old left-back also featured in the play-offs with Fulham, as Slavisa Jokanovic’s side lost out to Reading in the semi-finals.

After an impressive debut season, Sessegnon is attracting interest from the Premier League this summer, but his current teammate, Aluko, insists wherever the youngster is next season, he must be playing regular football, even if it is out on-loan, he said:

“He's well ahead of his age. There is a lot of learning for him still to do and that will only come with playing games and gathering experience. This is his first season in professional football.

''He is an exceptional talent. I think what is important for him is to keep progressing - and he's progressed this year because he played regularly.

''So if he does go to a big club, which is going to happen at some point, those big clubs loan players out all the time - if he goes to a Manchester City or Tottenham or Manchester United or wherever, would he play in their first team now?

''If he goes and doesn't play, it doesn’t make sense. But if he goes there and goes out on loan and plays regularly, it's still good for him. So there are a lot of options for him.”

Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly leading the race to sign Sessegnon this summer, but the Fulham man would face stiff competition for a starting berth in the North London, with Danny Rose and Ben Davies offering Mauricio Pochettino options at left-back.

Despite the interest in Sessegnon, Jokanovic is hoping to retain his service over the summer, along with Tom Cairney, who is also in-demand.

Cairney is attracting interest from Newcastle United, who have reportedly had a £20m bid turned down by Fulham.

Fulham fans… Do you expect Sessegnon to stay at Craven Cottage this summer? Or is the lure of the Premier League too much to turn down? Let us know your thoughts!