Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has been 'very impressed' by Ruben Loftus-Cheek's work ethic in pre-season training, GIVEMESPORT can exclusively reveal.
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The Blues are currently training at Cobham ahead of their three pre-season friendlies this summer, the first of which sees them take on AFC Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium later tonight.
Loftus-Cheek reported back for pre-season training with the Champions League champions earlier this month but according to football.london, Serie A giants Lazio have enquired about his services as he finds himself on the radar of former boss Maurizio Sarri.
The 25-year-old midfielder joined Chelsea at the age of eight and has spent time out on loan at Premier League rivals Crystal Palace and Fulham.
However, according to a well-placed source, the Blues have no intention of letting the 10-cap England international leave Stamford Bridge this summer, despite him being linked to a potential reunion with the Italian.
The source said: "Tuchel has been very impressed by what he has seen so far from Loftus-Cheek. The club haven't shown any interest in letting him leave on loan and he is not up for sale as things stand.
"He has returned to Cobham with a real hunger and determination to succeed and that is showing in his performances during pre-season training.
"That's exactly the kind of attitude Tuchel wants to see from his squad.
"Tuchel feels he is the man who can get the best out of Loftus-Cheek. The manager has had his eye on him for quite some time and has always admired the way he plays.
"He also views him as something of an unpolished gem who has lots of potential and says there is plenty more to come from him despite having been written off by some."
How well did Loftus-Cheek play at Craven Cottage?
Loftus-Cheek was one of the few bright sparks for Fulham in an otherwise terrible season for Scott Parker's side.
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The Englishman scored his maiden goal for the club against Everton in November 2020, but he couldn't stop his adopted team from avoiding the drop.
According to data provided by WhoScored, only Tom Cairney was fouled more times per game than Loftus-Cheek in that same period, with the Lewisham-born midfielder winning a hefty 1.7 fouls on average.
What has Tuchel said about Loftus-Cheek?
Former Paris Saint-Germain manager Tuchel recently admitted that he is a big fan of Loftus-Cheek, and even compared him to retired German footballer Michael Ballack.
“I was quite a fan of him when he was even younger,” he said to The Guardian recently. “It reminded us a bit of his style of play and movements with Michael Ballack.
"There were some links about him all the time with maybe a move to the German league so we were well aware of his talent.
“He is on loan now and doing well. It would be unfair to judge him from TV. I like to work with players and give my opinion then – maybe also pretty quick but also from a direct impression.
"I don’t know what my opinion is or the club’s opinion is. There’s no decision made yet.”
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