Chelsea’s Ruben Loftus-Cheek deserves regular playing time

According to the Mirror UK, Loftus-Cheek is garnering interest from his old club Crystal Palace, along with Bournemouth, Newcastle, West Ham, and once again, German club Schalke.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek was a part of England’s World Cup squad this past summer in Russia as the Three Lions finished fourth in the world after a fairly impressive performance. Despite Loftus-Cheek being part of the national team, he’s struggled to barely see any playing time for Chelsea.

The 22-year old has played just nine times this year and only four of those appearances have come in the Premier League, totalling just 119 minutes in the EPL so far this season. He enjoyed a quality loan spell at Crystal Palace last season where he was a regular in the starting eleven, making 24 appearances and netting twice and tallying three assists.

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Palace is now showing interest in their former loanee for another spell in January, along with other English clubs and Bundesliga Side Schalke all vying for the midfielder.

But Maurizio Sarri addressed the Loftus-Cheek rumors in a recent interview with reporters, making it clear that he is in the Italian’s plans for the future and that he will not be going anywhere.

"“He had some problems to understand very well what I wanted but now he is improving and, in the last two matches, I was really very happy with him.”“I want him to stay with me, to stay with us. So, I think that there is no chance that he will leave in January.”-Maurizio Sarri"

Loftus-Cheek saw playing time in Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Fulham over the weekend, coming on for Mateo Kovacic in the second half. He made his presence felt immediately, netting his fifth goal across all competitions this season.

He is making the most of the opportunities that he’s been given. Loftus-Cheek netted a hat-trick in October during Europa League play, tallying three of his five goals in one match. Injuries at the beginning of the season hampered his progress, but he is fully healthy now and ready to contribute for the Blues.

If he doesn’t see more regular playing time, he should go on a loan-spell where he can play a lot more and develop.

He needs to be playing regular football.

I know Maurizio Sarri is saying that Loftus-Cheek is more in his plans now and that he’ll be seeing more playing time, but seeing is believing. He could also just be saying that because of the cloud of rumours about Loftus-Cheek going on loan to another club in January.

The midfielder’s form in the limited time he’s played this year has proven that he definitely deserves more time on the pitch. He has Mateo Kovacic and Ross Barkley to compete with at his position, and Loftus-Cheek will be hoping to receive his first start on Wednesday night when the Blues clash with Wolverhampton.

His impressive play in the Fulham match should hopefully give him the chance to feature in the starting eleven for Sarri’s squad, and hopefully, he can build off of that.

He is a strong, physical midfielder and his form with Crystal Palace last season earned him the call-up to his country which ultimately secured him a spot on the World cup squad. Loftus-Cheek has proven to be a quality player but honestly, if he doesn’t see more opportunities to play in December, he should be personally requesting a loan move.

It’s the best decision for his development. Whether it’s to another club in England or over to Schalke in the Bundesliga, he will definitely see regular time on the pitch. Going to Germany wouldn’t necessarily be a bad idea either.

Look how fellow Englishman Jadon Sancho has turned into a star for Borussia Dortmund over the span of this season. He could reinvent himself over there just like Sancho has, along with Reiss Nelson who is also starring for Hoffenheim.

Even if he does end up going on loan, Loftus-Cheek is still property of Chelsea. If the playing time doesn’t present itself this month, asking for a move would be the logical decision and would definitely be for the betterment of his career.