Ruben Loftus Cheek has made a decision to stay at Stamford Bridge for the upcoming season and test his mettle against established competition under new manager Maurizio Sarri.
The Italian tactician seems ready to give chances to the players who impress, but lacks the time to experiment too much and is on his way to identifying his best starting line up for a considerable time to come.
In midfield, Tiemoue Bakayoko’s departure to AC Milan on a season long loan deal means there will be space for Loftus-Cheek to prove himself to the new head coach at the club after spending last season on loan at Crystal Palace.
The England international is set to fight for a place in the Blues midfield against Cesc Fabregas, N’Golo Kante, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Ross Barkley and Danny Drinkwater. Those six midfielders are all competing for a place in Sarri’s three man midfield but with the former Napoli tactician settling on Jorginho and Kante as two main starters in most games this season, the one space remaining will be fought by the five midfielders remaining, reducing Loftus Cheek’s chances, but according to the Guardian, the 22-year old is confident he can win the heart of his new instructor and become a key player for Chelsea in the years to come.
There will be plenty of games to go around, with the Blues set to compete in the Europa League, EFL Cup, FA Cup and the Premier League.
