Chelsea: This just might be how Ruben Loftus-Cheek is now

Chelsea’s Ruben Loftus-Cheek has yet to really return to his old self preinjury. At some point, it is time to accept that just may be the way it is now.

Major injuries are earth shattering in a few different ways. There is the obvious being out for nearly a year and the loss of development and atrophy of skills. There is the psychological toll of not quite trusting one’s body yet. And ultimately, there is the physical loss of perhaps simply never being able to do something at the same level again.

With all the variables, players rebound in different ways and on different timescales. Kurt Zouma took roughly three years to get back to where he was before he did his ACL. Callum Hudson-Odoi is getting there, but he is still looking for the full explosiveness and sharpness he once had. And then there is Loftus-Cheek.

Fans waited a long time for Loftus-Cheek to start finding himself in the Chelsea side. Almost immediately, injury ended his season and put much of the next one in doubt. Due to Covid extending the season, he was able to get some run outs, but no one reasonable expected too much of him. Then the Brighton match happened this season, well over a year after his injury, and he didn’t look much improved from where he was in his first cameo upon returning last season. At some point, the club may just have to accept that this is Loftus-Cheek now.

From an outside looking in perspective, Loftus-Cheek appears to be facing all the tolls mentioned earlier. He is a bit past the point of development, but he doesn’t seem to control the ball with the fluidity he once did. Brief flashes of runs and dribbles implies that his body can run, but he understandably is weary to trust that ankle to do too much too soon. On that same note, he has tended to stay high up the field when his team is out of possession, regardless of his position in the formation. That could be tied into a physical toll of not being able to move up and down the pitch at the speed that he once did.

Some of this may be adjustments made by Frank Lampard to ease Loftus-Cheek back in. Having Loftus-Cheek play closer to the box isn’t a new idea, but Lampard seemingly is doing so in part because the English midfielder cannot get around on and off the ball like a midfielder is required to. Instead, Loftus-Cheek is operating almost like Mesut Ozil used to or a striker might. He stays higher up and waits to string things together further on in the play.

The only real way Loftus-Cheek might ever return to how he used to be is with playing time. Lampard may continue to offer him that, but based on Brighton, it may not be nearly frequently enough to push through the barriers. A loan may be what is needed to get him back to his best, but a loan at 24 is basically the beginning of a transfer with extra steps.

It would be both wise and expected for Loftus-Cheek to take a seat on the bench against Liverpool. Chelsea has a League Cup match afterwards and that can be a chance for Loftus-Cheek to build some confidence and show flashes of his old self. If he can’t, the club really needs to start thinking about having a difficult conversation.