West Ham United have been linked with a move for AC Milan and England International midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Caught Offside reports.
Despite the window only just closing, West Ham’s midfield has been so poor this season that we’re already being linked with January midfield signings and Loftus-Cheek would be a good one.
The West Ham midfield has lacked everything this season – quality, pace and power. The eventual addition of Soungoutou Magassa should add to that, but he doesn’t have the quality on the ball to completely transform the midfield on his own.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek has exactly that, the 29-year-old is known for his dribbling qualities, his ball carrying numbers have always been fantastic and is what we’ve lacked in our midfield since Declan Rice left the club.
RLC has averaged 2.86 progressive carries a game over the past 365 days, putting him in the top 4% of midfielders in Europe’s top 5 leagues. His touches in the attacking penalty area and pass completion numbers are also fantastic. This is a player that would really benefit the West Ham midfield right now.
However, with most West Ham transfer rumours, there is a negative. As quality as Loftus-Cheek is, him regaining his place in the England squad shows that, his injury history is a huge red flag.
We all know how many games he missed from his time in the Premier League. In five full seasons in the Premier League, four at Chelsea and one on loan at Crystal Palace RLC missed 121 matches. He has suffered all types of injuries; groin, hamstring, back and foot.
Loftus-Cheek’s injury record hasn’t got any better in Italy. Since joining the club in the summer of 2023, the England midfielder has missed a total of 41 matches in just over two seasons.
As a type of player, Loftus-Cheek is exactly what we need in our midfield. However, his age and injury record suggests we should stay away, unless its a small fee. However, it would probably take at least £20m in January, so hopefully we can scout a similar style but younger player than the former Chelsea man.
