On the latest episode of The Rumour Review podcast, Pete O’Rourke was joined by football agent Jamie Holsgrove to discuss the latest transfer rumours in the Premier League.
One topic of discussion on the podcast was the future of Chelsea midfielder Ruben-Loftus Cheek.
The midfielder has been linked with a loan move away from Stamford Bridge in recent weeks, with the Blues’ signing of Kai Havertz amongst others perhaps meaning that the Englishman will struggle to get into Frank Lampard’s side this season.
Here’s what Holsgrove had to say about the chances of Loftus-Cheek leaving Chelsea on loan before the transfer deadline:
“[He’s a] fantastic player, obviously any agent would love to Reuben as a client.
“I can’t speak for him personally but looking at him coming through Chelsea as a trainee, first professional, got into the England squad [at] every level.
“[He’s] a fantastic player. I think his best season was 2018/19, I think he scored 10 goals, [he] signed a new contract until 2024.
“He had an Achilles problem which he’s probably well and truly over now but I would imagine from Frank Lampard’s perspective that he’s looking at him going, ‘Well, is he really 100% ready for us for this campaign? He’s signed a five-year contract, maybe we can bring someone else in and let him go and play his football somewhere else.’
“I think he’s a fantastic player, he’s Chelsea through and through. You’d expect him to do a fantastic job for someone like West Ham or Southampton I think he’s been linked with.
He later adds:
“Southampton would suit him better, wouldn’t it? Down on the South Coast, there [are] some good connections down there. Yeah, I could probably see him going down to West Ham or Southampton probably.”
TIF Thoughts…
Holsgrove suggests that West Ham could be a likely destination for Loftus-Cheek and considering the Blues’ reported interest in Declan Rice, perhaps the 24-year-old could provide a makeweight in any potential deal for the Hammers ace.
As Holsgrove suggests, the midfielder grabbed 10 goals in the Premier League and the Champions League combined in the 2018/19 season, and with David Moyes’ side having lacked many goalscorers in midfield last season, you could argue that signing Loftus-Cheek would make sense.
Who would you rather see Loftus-Cheek join on loan?
West Ham
Southampton
Southampton, meanwhile, have also lost Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the transfer window and are yet to add another midfielder to their side (per Transfermarkt), so, you could also argue they could do with signing someone like Loftus-Cheek.
Again, other than Danny Ings, they struggled for consistent goalscorers last season, so if they could add a fully fit Loftus-Cheek to their side and hope he rediscovers his form from 2018/19, then he could prove to be a real success in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side.