Loftus-Cheek faces an uphill struggle but do not write him off
https://theathletic.com/2070414/2020/09/17/ruben-loftus-cheek-chelsea-criticism-neville-carragher/
The criticism was strong and it was damning.
Football players are used to negative comments from supporters, even after a positive performance, but when it comes from high-profile ex-professionals, it particularly stings.
In the aftermath of Chelsea’s 3-1 victory over Brighton, Ruben Loftus-Cheek found himself the subject of damning comments from pundits Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football show.
“I thought he was really disappointing,” Neville said. “I don’t think Loftus-Cheek can complain. He’s been given games. I don’t think he’s ever grasped his chance yet. There’s going to come a point when they’re going to cash in and get £25 million for him.”
Carragher joined in the condemnation of the England international. He added: “If you get your chance, you have to grab it. He’s had his chances now.”
For two-highly respected voices in the game, it was surprising they failed to mention — or appeared ignorant — to the rather significant fact that Loftus-Cheek was out for over a year with a serious achilles injury, sustained in a charity match against New England Revolution in May 2019. Indeed, he has played just 288 minutes of first-team football in the last 16 months because of it.
https://theathletic.com/podcast/139-straight-outta-cobham/?episode=44
No one, not even Loftus-Cheek himself, will argue that he performed well at Brighton. When he was replaced by Ross Barkley in the 61st minute, you could see the disappointment on his face because of how little he’d been able to produce. The failure to find Timo Werner during a two-v-one break in the first half summed it up. Manager Frank Lampard and the backroom staff greeted him with conciliatory pats and handshakes as he took a place on the bench.
Statistics don’t always tell the full story, yet on this occasion, they did. Despite playing in the No 10 role, the 24-year-old didn’t have any shots or blocked shots. He completed just 11 of 17 passes attempted and had 27 touches of the ball overall — the only players with lower numbers in the team for these two categories were late substitutes Callum Hudson-Odoi and Cesar Azpilicueta. On top of that, he made no tackles, clearances or interceptions.
So Chelsea have cause for concern, right? After all, it is now seven months since he made his comeback in a development squad friendly against Brentford B and apart from a nice assist for Tammy Abraham at Crystal Palace in July, the dynamic play he can provide hasn’t really been seen.
However, lack of fortune, which almost seems like the story of Loftus-Cheek’s career, has played a part in a lack of match sharpness and should be taken into account.
Sources have assured The Athletic the attacking midfielder has been training well for a long period. But that doesn’t mean a player is 100 per cent for the games themselves.
He was really looking on track earlier in the year. Indeed, this reporter saw him looking strong and ready for competitive action during an under-23s match against Everton in March.
Yet, just over a week later, football was halted due to COVID-19. It stopped the momentum. All players in the country suffered from having to spend three months working out at home but it was a particular setback for Loftus-Cheek, who had already missed out on so much.
He managed nine first-team appearances, two of which were starts, when the 2019-20 campaign resumed. Understandably, with a top-four finish at stake, Chelsea couldn’t really afford to pick him much more than that and get vital minutes into his legs. There was another reason for his absence from the line-up. It is understood his running statistics in comparison with other Chelsea players were flagged up and it was highlighted he needed to do more in training and in games.
With a short turnaround and an international break to fit in before 2020-21 began, pre-season was heavily disrupted, too. Normally, teams have at least half a dozen warm-up games before a ball is kicked in anger — Chelsea had just one. Loftus-Cheek played 72 minutes but as a club source insists: “It was not enough”.
Even the opportunity of an in-house game wasn’t possible. Chelsea had a number of the squad — up to 10 — self-isolating in the build-up because of a COVID-19 scare and quarantine rules after travelling abroad on holiday. This meant many of Loftus-Cheek’s team-mates at the Amex Stadium were not at their best physically either, which didn’t help. While Chelsea won the contest, it was not a vintage display and the scoreline flattered them.
The views of Neville and Carragher have not been well-received inside the camp. As one insider adds: “It was so harsh to jump on Loftus-Cheek after he’s been out of the game so long.”
How will Loftus-Cheek react to the negative scrutiny? It will definitely be one to watch. Sources describe him as an individual who does take criticism to heart and can take it quite personally on occasion, so it is a good thing he has Lampard as coach, someone who was on the receiving end of plenty of condemnation throughout his playing career and in the two years he’s been a manager (including during his first season at Derby).
What does the future hold for Loftus-Cheek? Well, the club showed their faith in him by agreeing a five-year contract in July 2019, just a couple of months after sustaining the achilles problem.
Once Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic are fully fit, there is going to be a lot of competition for places in the attacking areas of the pitch. But it is believed he is very much part of Lampard’s plans for the campaign ahead, especially with his ability to play in so many positions. The worry, though, is can he get the regular run of games he needs to build up a rhythm, the kind seen during Maurizio Sarri’s one year in charge, when he played 42 times for club and country.
To get that, though, Loftus-Cheek needs to produce a lot more than he did at Brighton. Lampard has his own pressures to face, with expectations far greater following a spending spree in the market of over £200 million.
Loftus-Cheek is one of the most likeable players in the game. He is humble and has not let fame go to his head. But as Neville and Carragher demonstrated, people are now looking for his vast potential to be fully realised. It would help if a bit of luck finally went his way.
