FanPost

Ruben Loftus Cheek.... Is he actually a striker?

update 3rd December 2018
AND HE SCORES AGAIN. THE LINK UP PLAY AND THE MOVEMENT AND THE POSITIONING SCREAMS STRIKER

Having watched RLC sparkle in the past 3 games, my desire that he succeeds has grown even more. After seeing him in the first half of the game against Derby last night, i couldnt help but think that maybe he is the striker we have been missing.

Yes he is a Midfielder, but anyone watching the last 3 games will agree that he is not a fan of defending and can come across as lazy even in an off the ball situation. Sarri clearly doesnt view him as an option as a starting midfielder especially in the bigger games and has played him on the wing instead where he's done a decent job. I do, however feel that his skill set is best served at playing a target man center forward. Here's why.

Height and Frame: he certainly has the height and the frame befitting a striker who can out-muscle commanding centerbacks and his ability to twist and turn defenders as shown in the past couple of games is certainly a strength

Possession: Using the above mentioned physical attribute, it is extremely extremely difficult to dispossess him on the ball. He has that Mikelesque ability to retain the ball under pressure from opposing defenders makes him a perfect target man where he can receive the ball and lay it off to Hazard or Pedro or Willian as they make their run into the box. see this video of him in his international debut against germany. He only lost the ball twice the entire game.

Eye for Goal: Yes he has scored 4 in the past 3 games but i am not basing my judgement solely on that statistic. Ive followed his career as a youth player and while he hasnt scored that many to fall into the striker category he certainly likes to give it a go. He can also be a tad selfish which for me isnt always a bad trait if you are playing as a Center Forward. My point is he is always motivated to give it a try, although much improvement is needed in this department

Vision: he can certainly pass a ball to start an attack with a flick here and turn there. He can also draw players to him and out of position since he is so hard to dispossess. just picture him playing a 1-2 with hazard or pedro or willian resulting in a real chance. see this youth game video of his where he starts the attack in his own box and seemed a class apart from the opponents as he bulldozed past them

Dribbling: He dribbles like a forward, bulldozes thru defenders and can create something out of nothing. The video above can tell you more than i can ever do with my words


He isnt the finished article and still needs alot of work to be a regular for Chelsea in this position.

Heading: from what i know despite his height he can barely head the ball

Finishing: still needs plenty of work to be a striker as he can be guilty of taking too many sub standard shots

Positioning: not exactly a weakness but he would need to be retrained as a forward and start moving like one.

After Hasselbaink, Drogba and Costa he would be exactly what we needed up top to strike fear into the hearts of defenders. I leave you with a video of his performance against Derby so you can judge for yourself what kind of a player he actually is in your eyes

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