Ruben Lofus-Cheek has been speaking in the Croydon Advertiser, which sounds more like the kind of paper you’d be buying a used lawnmover off Roy Hodgson’s brother in law than one carrying exclusive quotes from an international footballer, but there you go.
In this discussion the midfielder doesn’t hold back on how the last few years at Chelsea has slowed his development, and he seems happy to be in South East London now playing week in week out.
“A lack of games held me back, definitely. When I had a chance, and when you don’t play, you really feel the difference of what matches give you; the match sharpness, the fitness, the strength,” the 21 year old is quoted as saying.
This in itself is what we all know already: the trade off for staying to play with the big boys at Chelsea was a lack of game time under Mourinho and then under Conte.
But what’s perhaps more significant, and more worrying, is the revelation from the midfielder that he’s had “no contact” with the Chelsea manager.
One would have thought his excellent form at Crystal Palace would merit a text message, and certainly an England debut where he put in such a strong performance seems deserving of at least a thumbs up emoji.
