‘There’s a possibility’: Manager says reported West Ham and Aston Villa target could leave

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Frank Lampard has suggested that West Ham United and Aston Villa target Ruben Loftus-Cheek could leave on loan this summer, as per his comments on Chelsea’s official website.

The Independent have claimed that West Ham and Villa both want the Chelsea midfielder, who seems to have fallen down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge.

And the two Premier League sides would surely have been delighted to hear Lampard’s latest comments, which hint that Loftus-Cheek may well be on the move before transfer deadline day.

“I’m very open with Ruben and we’ve had a couple of conversations in the last week,” Lampard said.

“He’s fit as a fiddle so he can play week-in, week-out and he needs to play coming off the back of a lot of work now. He would have been playing games earlier if it wasn’t for lockdown.

“There’s a possibility that he may go out to play games because I think that will be great for him. We hold him in very high regard here, I certainly do and that could be a good option for him. If that’s not the right option he’ll be competitive in this squad as well because of the qualities he has.

“I’m relaxed about it but I want to find the best path for Ruben and the best path for us so at the minute we’ll see with the week we’ve got ahead of us.”

Loftus-Cheek actually started Chelsea’s first game of the season, but his ineffective display against Brighton & Hove Albion appears to have proven costly.

If the England international does sign for either West Ham or Villa he could be a brilliant addition to their squads.

On his day Loftus-Cheek remains a player of real quality, but he still needs nursing back to his best, after suffering with a severe injury last year.

At Villa or West Ham, Loftus-Cheek would surely walk straight into their starting line-ups, and that could really benefit him in the long-term, as he looks to break back into Chelsea’s team.