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Ruben Loftus-Cheek Needs to Play with More Authority to Become a Chelsea Star
- Updated: April 19, 2016
There’s a lot of talk surrounding Chelsea and the young players at the club right now. It’s all for good reason, too, as the Blues successfully defended their UEFA Youth League title this week and still have the FA Youth Cup final to contend.
With the club proving so dominant at junior level, the feeling is that Chelsea could be on the cusp of achieving something special with those players coming through—sort of their own Class of ’92.
Like any revolution, it needs one player to get the momentum going, which is why so much is being asked of Ruben Loftus-Cheek. A former youth team captain, he’s the academy starlet leading the way for his peers right now. Becoming more established under Guus Hiddink, the hope is the 20-year-old impresses enough to show Chelsea they can put faith in their youngsters to deliver success.
Loftus-Cheek has started three games on the bounce for Chelsea of late, completing the full 90 minutes against Aston Villa and Manchester City. Those performances will go a long way in aiding his development, but now the landscape of expectation is beginning to shift.
The focus isn’t about getting Loftus-Cheek playing games, but on him doing enough to influence proceedings and show he is a solution to Chelsea’s future as the club rebuilds after a nightmare campaign.
“I definitely feel like a first-team player now,” Loftus-Cheek told the Chelsea programme ahead of last weekend’s loss to Manchester City. “In my mind, I am one.
“The more you play, the more you feel part of the squad, and then in turn, you end up playing better. I think it’s a psychological gap as well—if you don’t think you’re a first-team player, then you won’t be.”
We’re still not sure where his best position is in midfield. Is Loftus-Cheek a No. 10? Should he sit deeper and use his physicality to bulldoze through the middle of the park?
Lacking the sort of creativity we associate with players in that No. 10 role, the suggestion is Loftus-Cheek will be better off playing deeper where he can influence games more, which is highlighted in that Chelsea programme interview.
In the same way Loftus-Cheek …
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