According to reports, West Ham are apparently interested in a loan move for Chelsea star Ruben Loftus-Cheek. A potential stumbling block is said to be the unwillingness of Blues boss Maurizio Sarri to send the England international to another club, with the former Napoli gaffer of the view that Loftus-Cheek’s development would be better aided by staying at Stamford Bridge.
Loftus-Cheek has earned nine England caps since making his debut under Gareth Southgate in November last year. He also made four World Cup appearances for the Three Lions in Russia, but first team minutes at Chelsea have been hard to come by for the 22 year old.
Loftus-Cheek is yet to start a league game this season under Sarri and has been restricted to appearances from the bench against Huddersfield, Bournemouth and Burnley so far. The Italian’s first choice midfield appears to be the trio of Mateo Kovacic, Jorginho and N’Golo Kante, with Ross Barkley also in the running, which means there’s plenty of competition for midfield spots at the Bridge for Loftus-Cheek.
The midfielder has however made the most of his limited appearances so far, netting a hat trick in the Europa League against BATE Borisov and scoring against Burnley last month. Sarri has praised Loftus-Cheek in the past, but has maintained that the medio needs to improve on the defensive front.
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