Ruben Loftus-Cheek: Analysis of the Chelsea midfielder's full debut

 

We assess teenager Ruben Loftus-Cheek's full debut in the Chelsea midfield against Liverpool.

The 19-year-old has been touted as a potential star for some time and made his Champions League debut against Sporting in December.

This was the first Premier League start for an England Under-19 international who captained Chelsea to FA Youth Cup success in 2014 and followed up with UEFA Youth League glory with the club this season.

While Chelsea had to settle for a 1-1 draw against Liverpool, Loftus-Cheek certainly impressed for the home team, producing a composed performance before being withdrawn on the hour mark to a standing ovation.
With the help of former Chelsea boss Glenn Hoddle, we assess Loftus-Cheek’s full debut, examining the areas in which he impressed…

Passing
Charged with keeping it simple ahead of the back four, Loftus-Cheek did a very efficient job in that regard with one crisp early pass setting the tone. In fact, he completed all 27 of his passes and was the only starter on either side to have a 100 per cent pass completion in the first half. By the close, he was the only player among the 28 involved who didn’t give possession of the ball away even once.
Although the fact that Kurt Zouma received more of his passes than anyone else suggests that he did not take a particularly expansive approach, Loftus-Cheek showed that he can keep it simple to great effect against the best. “The kid did well,” Hoddle told Sky Sports. “He kept it nice and simple.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ruben Loftus-Cheek got in an early foul on danger man Philippe Coutinho

“He did nothing fantastic, it was nothing sensational but with 27 passes completed he kept the game simple. Playing in that deeper role you’ve got to be sharp and use the ball constructively. I think he’s a player who can see pictures ahead of him. I don’t think he’s going to be one of those players who is like a crab and look sideways and backwards first. He’s got a picture.”
Tackling
It wasn’t just with the ball that Loftus-Cheek proved effective. “His defensive awareness is good,” added Hoddle. “I saw a few times when he got one-on-one with people and he got really low. He’s a tall and elegant lad but he knows how to track people. He read things extremely well. His defensive play was very cute and really quite experienced for a youngster.”