🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Ruben Loftus-Cheek

[Vesper 30,175]

10 hours ago, Jason said:

Southampton latest to be linked with Loftus-Cheek...

 

Southampton see Loftus-Cheek as a potential loan option – but not McTominay

https://theathletic.com/2090315/2020/09/24/southampton-ruben-loftus-cheek-scott-mctominay-tom-davies/

Southampton’s 5-2 home loss to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday highlighted a gaping hole in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad.

Once Oriol Romeu had to be withdrawn early out of fear he was going to earn a second yellow card, the Southampton manager could only turn to Will Smallbone as he tried to prevent the game getting away from his team.

For a 19-year-old to come off the bench and make a difference in a match that was quickly slipping beyond Southampton’s control was always going to be difficult, despite his best efforts.

What it did do though, was re-emphasise the fact they need to sign a midfielder sooner rather than later, especially as Hasenhuttl is going to stick with his new high defensive line despite the tactic being so ruthlessly exploited by Spurs.

Sunday’s second half highlighted how important the central midfielders will be in that system.

During the opening 45 minutes, Romeu and James Ward-Prowse both made a nuisance of themselves, pressing Tottenham at every opportunity. But the intensity dropped after the break and Jose Mourinho’s creative players had time to look up and spray passes beyond the defence for Son Heung-min and Harry Kane to run on to.

What Southampton really need is a player who can come in and hit the ground running or, at the very least, need only a handful of games to get up to speed with Hasenhuttl’s methods.

Having already lost three games on the bounce, two of those in the Premier League, there will be a desire to arrest that slide before it turns into a worrying decline.

While the now-departed Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was never the most exciting midfielder, he was effective alongside Ward-Prowse, with both players knowing their role in the team and sticking to it religiously. They were disciplined and had the positional awareness to close out danger but, more importantly for Hasenhuttl, they pressed the opposition relentlessly, not allowing them more than a handful of seconds to look up and spot a potential pass.

Mario Lemina and Harrison Reed have also left the club this summer, meaning three central midfielders have gone through the exit door without any coming in the entrance.

Going into this transfer window, strengthening the defence was always Hasenhuttl’s priority. Mohammed Salisu and Kyle Walker-Peters arrived before pre-season and it then became a case of selling players before being able to buy again.

Even though the likes of Guido Carrillo, Sofiane Boufal and Wesley Hoedt are still at the club, there’s been a realisation that the midfield is undercooked. It’s something Hasenhuttl has admitted and is now looking to rectify. With less than two weeks to go before the window closes on October 5 though, time is starting to run out to strengthen that department.

But in Thursday’s press conference, Hasenhuttl made it clear that he will be adding to his squad before the transfer window closes: “I know we will get players in,” he said ahead of the trip to Burnley. “I think it has come to the moment where there are some good opportunities coming up for us. The players who were our No 1 choices were not so easy to get.”

Weston McKennie was one player the club had targeted, but they were unable to get a deal over the line before Juventus swooped in offering the USA midfielder a financial package Southampton just weren’t able to match.

“We have some alternatives now, and we are still keen for them to come to us — whether that’s on loan or permanently,” Hasenhuttl added. “I think we know we need one or two players minimum, maybe three.”

The Athletic is led to believe Southampton are considering both the permanent and loan markets to bolster their midfield ranks.

If a player joins on loan, the expectation is they will come with Premier League experience as opposed to an overseas import likely to need time to get up to speed with the rigours of England’s top flight.

The midfielder attracting plenty of attention from Southampton fans, especially on social media, is Chelsea’s Ruben Loftus-Cheek. The 24-year-old England international has been left out of both of Frank Lampard’s match-day squads since a disappointing performance against Brighton in the opening game of the season.

Following their most recent match on Wednesday, a 6-0 win over Barnsley in the Carabao Cup, Lampard didn’t rule out the possibility of some players leaving, saying: “I keep getting asked about the size of the squad.

“There might be movement, we know that, but nothing is concrete so don’t read too much into those selections at the minute. It will have to be things which are right for the club and individuals and me and in terms of what happens in the next couple of weeks.”

The Athletic understands Southampton are currently monitoring the situation closely, although there is some debate as to whether Loftus-Cheek can play effectively in the No 6 role. But should he become available on loan, it would be an avenue the St Mary’s side would be keen to explore. However, another issue could be his wages.

Loftus-Cheek is believed to be on over £100,000 a week, considerably more than any current Southampton player makes. For any move to come to fruition, it would involve Chelsea subsidising a chunk of his salary.

There could be some hope, though, as Burnley managed to secure a 50/50 wage split with Chelsea when they took midfielder Danny Drinkwater on loan for last season, which shows the London side could be willing to negotiate.

However, as explained by The Athletic last week, Loftus-Cheek is believed to be part of Lampard’s plans this season, although, as another source explained, a lot could happen between now and the end of the transfer window.

One area of concern regarding any move for Loftus-Cheek could be his recent injury record. He sustained a serious achilles injury in a US friendly against MLS club New England Revolution in May last year, meaning he’s played just 288 minutes of first-team football in the past 16 months.

Another name that has been discussed within the club is that of Manchester United’s Scott McTominay — a midfielder Hasenhuttl is said to admire greatly. However, any ambitious move for the Scotland international was effectively ruled out when United didn’t sign Thiago Alcantara. Had the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich star headed to Old Trafford rather than join Liverpool, Southampton believed it could have opened the door for a loan move for 23-year-old McTominay.

Another player linked in recent days has been Everton’s Tom Davies.

On the face of it, the 22-year-old fits the bill. It wouldn’t be too difficult getting him out of Goodison Park as Carlo Ancelotti is well stocked in midfield and he has fallen down the pecking order, starting just one of Everton’s four matches this season — the Carabao Cup win over Salford City — and playing just a single minute in the Premier League. Yet, although he’s a player Southampton have previously monitored, The Athletic revealed this week there has been no contact between the clubs regarding any move.

If Southampton were to sign a player permanently, something they are also working on behind the scenes, then it would be a Moussa Djenepo-type investment. In other words, a young midfielder who has the potential to come in and do a job, but would more than likely need some time to adapt.

The club’s revamped recruitment strategy sees them target “rough diamonds”, who, eventually, can be developed into highly-rated players before being sold for a sizeable profit further down the line.

[Jase 43,479]

Lampard revealed that Loftus-Cheek may well go out on loan...

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/sep/28/ruben-loftus-cheek-may-leave-chelsea-on-loan-says-frank-lampard

“I’m very open with Ruben. We’ve had a couple of conversations in the last week. He’s fit as a fiddle so he can play week in, week out. He needs to play. He’s done a lot of work now. He would have been playing earlier if it wasn’t for lockdown and restart. There’s a possibility that Ruben may go out to play games because that would be great for him.

“We hold him in very high regard. I certainly do and that could be a good option for him. If that’s not the right option he’ll be competitive in this squad as well. I’m relaxed about it but I want to find the best path for Ruben and I want to find the best path for us.”

“He’s had a difficult time,” Lampard said. “The injury was a bad one. He hasn’t played as many minutes for this club as he would have liked for different reasons. Just before his injury he was playing really well and contributing. I was always looking forward to him getting back fit and working with him.

“He wants to play and the reality is I have a lot of competition in those areas. Ruben is versatile. He can play different roles in the midfield and sometimes off the side, so I was really looking forward to working with him because I know what he can do. He gives us something slightly different in terms of his physicality. But there is also a priority for everyone that Ruben plays games. We’ll do what feels right.”

[Tomo 21,751]

On 25/09/2020 at 1:26 AM, King Kante said:

I would disagree that he was good in the initial part of Sarri's reign or that he was good throughout his whole Palace loan (of which I think he only played 24 games with some of those being sub appearances and with a lot of his starts he would get subbed off.) In both seasons he took a while to get going and had niggly/long term injury problems. 

My views on Barkley v RLC is that both are deeply flawed players. For me, Barkley lacks any football intelligence and doesn't have anywhere near the ability on the ball that some people give him credit for. However, he does make a good fist of recovering the ball and is able to track runners from midfield. RLC on the other hand is completely dire off the ball and cannot a) play 90 minutes of football (even in his good Sarri spell he was always subbed off between 60-70 mins looking knackered) and stay off the treatment table to even play 60 minutes consistently across a season. However, he is good on the ball and can be a difference maker.

Hence, as both players are essentially going to play back up to Mount/Havertz the question has to be, which one do you prefer? If you favour pure ability on the ball and are unconcerned about fitness, then RLC is your boy, if you want someone who will always be ready and can help close games out, then it will be Barkley. 

To be honest, I do not really have really strong opinions on which one gets to stay as I think both of them are seriously flawed. These flaws are also why I will not lose any sleep over the final decision as I accept one has to go and who ever does stay will continue to infuriate but in different ways. 

Barkley for me and you've summed up why, he can keep himself fit and do a decent job tactically.

[Special Juan 28,141]

Good news.

[Blues Forever 1,232]

With both Barkley and RLC off, surely this means 4-2-3-1 is our default formation.

[Alabama 1,992]

Just now, Blues Forever said:

With both Barkley and RLC off, surely this means 4-2-3-1 is our default formation.

Jorginhon to follow as well...Rice to replace him...

[Superblue 6,372]

I really hope this activity is being made on the basis that a bona-fide natural defensive midfielder is being brought in.

[Jase 43,479]

 

[Pizy 18,907]

Honestly, I think that's a terrible destination for him. He 100% needs to go out on loan, but is it really going to be beneficial to him playing in by far the worst side in the league and one who will certainly go down?  He and his team are going to be a used week in and week out.

I hoped he'd go somewhere like Southampton or Palace or something as was rumored where he'd at least have good coaching and a solid setup around him.

Can't see Fulham improving him.

[MoroccanBlue 5,382]

3 minutes ago, Pizy said:

Honestly, I think that's a terrible destination for him. He 100% needs to go out on loan, but is it really going to be beneficial to him playing in by far the worst side in the league and one who will certainly go down?  He and his team are going to be a used week in and week out.

I hoped he'd go somewhere like Southampton or Palace or something as was rumored where he'd at least have good coaching and a solid setup around him.

Can't see Fulham improving him.

Don't think he'd even start at either club.

[Jase 43,479]

 

[Hutcho 8,443]

Honestly, I think that's a terrible destination for him. He 100% needs to go out on loan, but is it really going to be beneficial to him playing in by far the worst side in the league and one who will certainly go down?  He and his team are going to be a used week in and week out.
I hoped he'd go somewhere like Southampton or Palace or something as was rumored where he'd at least have good coaching and a solid setup around him.
Can't see Fulham improving him.

He just needs game time. Sure he ain't gonna score or be in a possession based team but he has a chance to be "the man" on a shit team and play lots of games. He needs that. It's a million times better he plays than doesn't

[Special Juan 28,141]

Needs to be playing but simply not good enough right now for this side.

[Magic Lamps 11,692]

Feels like Wilshere 2.0 a long goodbye for the prodigy.

btw why tf is he on 150k? he was injured when we handed him a new contract, we coul dhave given him any wage we wanted he was in no position to decline.

[Jase 43,479]

 

[LAM09 7,051]

This move doesn't make sense at all. He's going backwards if anything.

[Magic Lamps 11,692]

2 minutes ago, LAM09 said:

This move doesn't make sense at all. He's going backwards if anything.

He is leaving in installments. We won’t find a buyer for him given his wages. No idea how the board can be so stupid to give players such big contracts completely needlessly

[LAM09 7,051]

He is leaving in installments. We won’t find a buyer for him given his wages. No idea how the board can be so stupid to give players such big contracts completely needlessly

I presume they expected him to kick on, but that extremely questionable friendly really messed him up.

[Magic Lamps 11,692]

1 minute ago, LAM09 said:

9 minutes ago, Magic Lamps said:

He is leaving in installments. We won’t find a buyer for him given his wages. No idea how the board can be so stupid to give players such big contracts completely needlessly

I presume they expected him to kick on, but that extremely questionable friendly really messed him up.

He Was offered and signed the extension after said friendly. 

[LAM09 7,051]

He Was offered and signed the extension after said friendly. 

Based on what he had done before. No one knew what was going to happen in the future.