Chelsea’s Ruben Loftus-Cheek has claimed he thinks his best position on the pitch is central midfield.
Loftus-Cheek, 26, is a Blues player that’s been very much in favour with Graham Potter since the new head coach arrived.
Chelsea are now 13 games into Potter’s reign in charge, with Loftus-Cheek featuring in all of them. He’s actually started eight times, too.
The Blues academy graduate has always been regarded as a central midfielder during the majority of his career, but he’s shown some flexibility in the past year or so.
He’s actually filled in when asked as a right wing-back in Chelsea colours, first under Thomas Tuchel and now by Potter.
The majority of his minutes this season have been in the centre of the park as an all-action midfielder, but this new versatility is an added skill available to his manager. For instance, he did slot in as the right wing-back in the midweek Carabao Cup defeat to Manchester City.
Loftus-Cheek position
Loftus-Cheek, who’s still quite popular in sections of the Chelsea fanbase because of his journey from academy to first team, is happy contributing so much to the group this season.
He’s admitted his preferred position to play, though.
“I am comfortable anywhere on the pitch, but I have always been a centre-midfielder. I can affect the game with my physicality most there, when I am able to get up and down in both boxes,” Loftus-Cheek told Sky Sports.
Loftus-Cheek did mention his physicality as a strength of his game, something which is definitely the case.
He can be a real Rolls-Royce when charging up the pitch on the ball, but the final piece of the jigsaw for him is finding the right pass.
It’s a sign of his improvement that he was reportedly watched by England boss Gareth Southgate in the build up to the winter World Cup. Unfortunately, he did miss out on the final 26-man England squad that was selected earlier this week.
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