Crystal Palace Fans Want World Cup Starlet to Return to Selhurst Park
Following his breakout season in the Premier League, Crystal Palace fans are hoping that Chelsea and England midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek will return to Selhurst Park this summer.
Chelsea recently announced the arrivals of Maurizio Sarri and, more importantly, Jorginho to Stamford Bridge. Jorginho showed his class under Sarri at Napoli, and will surely be one of the first names on Sarri's team sheet at Stamford Bridge. He completed more passes than anybody in Europe's top five leagues last season, and was key to Napoli in the heart of midfield.
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With this blockbuster signing, fans of English football have been speculating as to where Loftus-Cheek fits in to Sarri's plans for next season. Speaking to Sky Sports earlier this summer, Loftus-Cheek appeared to criticise Chelsea's treatment of their young players, meaning an exit could be on the cards.
Crystal Palace fans have jumped on Twitter to express their desire for Loftus-Cheek to return to their club.
After dominating youth football in Chelsea's academy, Loftus-Cheek endured several frustrating seasons in which he was forced to settle for a handful of sporadic appearances for Chelsea's first team. He was finally given a loan move in 2017, as Crystal Palace won the race for his signature.
Despite suffering from various injuries, including missing ten straight games towards the start of 2018, Loftus-Cheek managed to make 25 appearances for Crystal Palace, scoring twice and assiting a further four goals. Alongside Wilfried Zaha, Loftus-Cheek regularly looked like one of the more threatening attackers in the Crystal Palace side.
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His impressive form saw him handed his England debut in a friendly against Germany, in which he was the Man of the Match. He was able to continue his form and was named in England's World Cup squad as a result.
He made four appearances for England, completing 90 minutes twice during the group stages. After remaining on the bench during the knockout stages of the tournament, Loftus-Cheek was named in the team for England's third place playoff defeat to Belgium.
