Maurizio Sarri has praised Ruben Loftus-Cheek but does not believe the Chelsea midfielder is ready to play a full 90 minutes.
The England international, who has been plagued by back trouble, scored against Cardiff last weekend and was given a starting place for the midweek win over Brighton.
He responded with a fine performance and a cracking goal, which earned him a standing ovation when substituted late on.
Speaking at a media conference on Friday afternoon, head coach Sarri was asked if he believes Loftus-Cheek has improved since initially being overlooked.
The Italian replied: “Yes. A lot. Especially tactically. Now he is tactically a very good midfielder. At the beginning of the season he was a very offensive midfielder. Now he is complete I think.”
But Sarri is unsure whether Loftus-Cheek will retain his starting place for Monday’s derby against West Ham.
The player has not trained with the rest of the squad since the Brighton game as his recovery is being carefully managed.
“Maybe, but we need to check every day the condition of the back,” Sarri explained when asked if Loftus-Cheek would stay in the team.
“This morning he had only a recovery session because he needs time to recover after the match.
“The problem at the moment is only that he probably is unable to play 90 minutes.”
However, Sarri does not believe Loftus-Cheek’s back issues are a reason for long-term concern.
“No, I don’t think so. It’s a problem of course but I think our doctor is able to take control of the situation,” Sarri said.
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This post was last modified on 06/04/2019