Thomas Tuchel has told Football London that rumoured Everton and Southampton target, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, can ‘decide his own future’ at Chelsea.
The German was pretty honest about the attack-minded midfielder’s performances and shared how he is ‘never satisfied with him’.
Well, the England international is attracting interest from Premier League clubs, including Everton and Southampton this summer.
But after Loftus-Cheek appeared in Chelsea’s pre-season friendly win over Arsenal on Sunday, this is what Tuchel had to say about his player and his future.
“Generally, I am happy and that’s why he plays, he deserves to play at this point of the preparation,” said Tuchel. “But I think he can do even more, he can show up more.
“He can show more physical capability and drive more with the ball. I’m never satisfied with him, I have the feeling we need to push him to the absolute limit.
“It’s too early to judge Ruben. He has everything in his hands and it’s on him to decide his own future like every player. He has to keep on going 150% because 100% is not enough.”
It wasn’t so long ago that Loftus-Cheek was donning the colours of his country and looking to be a key part of Gareth Southgate’s squad.
But fast forward today and whilst the likes of Mason Mount, Jack Grealish and Phil Foden – who he was ahead of a number of years ago – are now thriving on the international and domestic stage, he has stagnated.
He simply needs minutes under his belt, and whilst he got that during his loan spell at Fulham last season, he couldn’t prevent their relegation.
Of course, if he can get the minutes at Stamford Bridge then he will stay put this summer.
However, just like last summer, he needs to be brave once more and search for those minutes to get people talking about his performances once again.
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