Ruben Loftus-Cheek made an immediate impact at Milan and La Gazzetta dello Sport revealed three reasons why the former Chelsea midfielder quickly moved to the Rossoneri.
RLC completed a €16 million permanent move from Chelsea earlier this summer and has already made his mark in the first three Serie A matches of the season with an assist and a penalty for the Rossoneri.
Stefano Pioli praised the Englishman after Milan Roma’s 2-1 win on Friday, saying the former Chelsea midfielder has a ‘mix of physicality and quality’ and ‘he is dangerous with his late runs.’ However, Pioli added, “I would like to see him with more consistency in the opponent’s box.”
La Gazzetta dello Sport explains what’s behind Loftus-Cheek’s immediate impact at Milan. Firstly, he arrived quite early as he was the second summer signing in early July after Marco Sportiello, so he was able to train all summer under Pioli.
Secondly, he plays as a box-to-box midfielder in a midfield three, his favorite role and system since his Chelsea academy days.
Finally, his compatriot and ex-Chelsea teammate Fikayo Tomori has helped him settle in here and sometimes explains what Pioli expects from him, although the Italian tactician also speaks to RLC in English.
The same applies to Christian Pulisic, who also has a good relationship with Loftus-Cheek. As La Gazzetta points out, the English midfielder passed the ball to Pulisic 19 times, more than any other teammate. Similarly, RLC has already received 13 passes from the American winger.
Loftus-Cheek was not called up for the September international matches by England manager Gareth Southgate. So he is training at Milanello with seven other first-team players in preparation for next week’s Madonnina derby.