Wigan Athletic boss reveals Liverpool icon provided advice before signing

And the way the England Under-20 defender has handled his first loan in the EFL – having spent a successful time last term in Scotland with Kilmarnock - Maloney says the sky's the limit for him.

"I've been really impressed with Luke, he's had a brilliant loan," said the Latics boss of the Preston-born youngster.

"I've loved his personality, he's literally thrown himself into any position I've asked him to do, he's been flat out, 100 per cent.

"To make it really simple, we signed him in January, and he's made our starting XI better. For a youngster to do that, it's full credit to him.

"Last summer, I spoke to Andy Robertson a little bit about Luke, but it wasn't going to be possible to get him on loan.

"Andy's obviously a very good player, but Luke should be ambitious enough to want to try to get to that level. And when he gets the chance, hopefully he'll be able to take it."

Despite Chambers being one of Latics' most consistent performers since his arrival, Maloney says it's not necessarily an indicator he will return to Liverpool and gatecrash the first team.

When asked whether there was a ceiling on Chambers' potential, Maloney said: "It's really difficult to look at something like that.

"The thing with young players...when you get to the really big games, at a club like Liverpool, it's how the lads react to those situations.

"With the really elite players, in my experience, there's another game just as big three or four days later.

"Whenever Liverpool play, it's one of the biggest games of the season for the other team. When they play one of the top teams, it's one of the games that decides the league title.

"And it's only really in those moments that you find out whether a young player has what it takes to really step up.

"Some players get put in there and fly immediately, for others it takes a little bit of time. But he's definitely got potential to play at a very high level in the future."

In Chambers' favour is his versatility, which has seen him cover left-back, left wing-back and left centre-back with equal assurance.

"In a back three, he can certainly play as the left centre-back, although I think it would be harder in a back four," added Maloney. "He can play left-back, left wing-back, left centre-back...and it's brilliant for me to be able to play him anywhere.

"The biggest thing about him is his personality...he's quite a quiet lad off the pitch, but on the pitch it's the exact opposite.

"I look back at his debut at Northampton...he wasn't even supposed to start...and he just came alive. The intensity and desire he shows to try to impact games...he's just been a brilliant loan signing, and full credit to him for that."