Loftus-Cheek would be well worth the wait for Crystal Palace

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Reports suggest Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Crystal Palace will need to wait for new Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri to make up his mind on the midfielder.

The Standard reported on Tuesday that Crystal Palace are eager to bring Ruben Loftus-Cheek back to the club on another loan deal, but they will need to wait for new Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri to decide if the midfielder is in his plans or not.

That is quite a difficult position for Palace; if Roy Hodgson waits it out and finds that he will be staying at Chelsea, Palace may well have missed their opportunity to find a backup option.

The frantic search for players will likely begin imminently now that the World Cup has finished, with Chelsea in a particular rush after replacing Antonio Conte on the brink of pre-season.

So any ideal replacement for Loftus-Cheek is surely going to be picked up before Palace have a chance of their own, making this waiting period a real risk for the club.

But it is undoubtedly a risk worth taking.

Loftus-Cheek became an integral part of Hodgson’s side last season and replacing him would be difficult even if Palace had all the time in the world.

Instead, they do have an opportunity to bring back a player who would need no time to gel, who they know can perform, who is coming off the back of a first World Cup, and who should only keep improving.

Even if it is just a one-year loan deal at the end of the day, Loftus-Cheek ticks so many boxes for Palace that any wait is worth the risk.