Chelsea loanee Ruben Loftus-Cheek reflects on England call-up, Crystal Palace struggles

In the first loan move of his young career, Ruben Loftus-Cheek has impressed at Crystal Palace despite the Eagles’ disastrous form in the Premier League that has seen them earn only 4 points in 11 matches — three of those coming in a most shocking win over Chelsea last month — and set a Premier League record with the shortest managerial tenure for Frank de Boer, who was sacked after just four games.

Now with Roy Hodgson in charge, Loftus-Cheek feels that Palace are is starting to build some confidence to engineer a great escape from the very bottom of the Premier League table. But even if that doesn’t materialize, at least ‘s getting plenty of playing time, right?

"Our confidence is building from a month ago. We are definitely improving and the confidence is coming, so we have got a good chance of getting some points in that period [after the international break]. We take it game by game. That is the best way to do it and look to improve."

"I came away from Chelsea to get game time. Experience, fitness, just getting used to playing in the Premier League week-in, week out. That is what I am getting."

Loftus-Cheek's form has caught the eyes of not only Chelsea and Palace fans, but also of England national team manager Gareth Southgate, who coached the Chelsea youngster at the U21 international level already. Earlier this week, Ruben was selected to join the senior squad for the first time ever as England take on Germany and Brazil in friendlies on Friday and Tuesday, respectively.

"I have had Gareth for three years in the Under-21s, he is a really good manager, so I am looking forward to working with him. We have won tournaments together, him and Steve Holland. He is very good with people, players. He treats everyone the same. What you see is what you get with him. He also demands standards in training and that is why he does so well."

"I was just at home [when I heard the news]. My phone was ringing off and I was like, 'What is going on here?' [Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson] was happy for me and said I deserved it. Hopefully I can do well."

"We will see what happens. I am a newcomer so I am not expecting anything. All I can do is train well and see what happens. It was a really good moment for me and my family [to receive that call-up]. But you cannot linger on it for too long. I have got to work hard and knuckle down. I am very happy but at the same time I have still got to work hard."

-Ruben Loftus-Cheek; Source: The Independent

Loftus-Cheek and striker Tammy Abraham, who also received his maiden call, have certainly earned the right to make the step up to the senior national team. Hopefully they can earn similar reward back at Chelsea in the near future as well.