OPINION
Chelsea have made a huge error in allow Ruben Loftus-Cheek to leave this summer on loan and they are going to have to dip into their pockets to replace him.
The 21-year-old midfielder has joined Premier League rivals Crystal Palace on a season-long loan move and will hope to secure more first-team experience.
The Englishman may now get more game time at Selhurt Park and develop as a player, but it was a poor move from Antonio Conte’s side to let him go.
Chelsea go into the new campaign with just three available central midfielders in the shape of N’Golo Kante, Cesc Fabregas and Lewis Baker, while summer signing Tiemoue Bakayoko works his way back to fitness.
The Blues are extremely thin in the centre of the park and can’t afford to rely on just four players to compete in both domestic and European competitions.
Allowing Loftus-Cheek to leave on loan is going to cost them as they now need to fork out on a new signing to fill a position in their squad.
They should have kept their academy graduate ahead of the new campaign and he certainly has the qualities to contribute to the Blues squad.
Loftus-Cheek has 32 senior appearances under his belt and is a highly-rated talent at Stamford Bridge.
The central midfielder is a box-to-box player that can contribute a lot both offensively and defensively, something he has shown in the past.
It is also always nice to see some of Chelsea’s emerging talents to get a full runout in the senior set-up and Loftus-Cheek is someone that has the ability.
However, while he is playing his football at Palace during the next nine months, Chelsea will need to needlessly spend money on finding a new central midfield option.