Antonio Conte fielded a heavily rotated side against Watford on Monday night, with youngsters such as Nathaniel Chalobah, Kenedy, Nathan Ake and Kurt Zouma all starting the game for the Blues, with academy starlet Ola Aina also coming on from the bench.
But a few might have wondered where Ruben Loftus-Cheek was and why wasn’t he given any playing time last night?
Blues boss Antonio Conte explained that the England U21 international missed the game due to a back injury – a problem which has bothered him occasionally before – but says he would’ve played him should the 21-year-old been fully fit.
“He’s struggling with a pain in his back. It’s a pity because for sure today was a good opportunity for him.
Ruben is a really good player. We have to take the best decision for him for next season, but in the future Ruben is a player from our academy with great prospects.”
– Antonio Conte on Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s injury, Chelsea FC
It’s still unsure whether Loftus-Cheek will be in Conte’s plans for next season, but the most important for him at this moment is to get as much playing time as possible to continue his development.
Hopefully Loftus-Cheek will be able to play in our final game of the campaign on Sunday, when we host Sunderland at the Bridge.
