- Fans sing praises of Ruben Loftus-Cheek after cameo vs. Tunisia.
- Gareth Southgate called on to start Loftus-Cheek against Panama.
- WATCH: Eden Hazard bags first goal contribution of the World Cup
Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek received plenty of adulation from England fans following his second-half cameo against Tunisia on Monday night.
Loftus-Cheek played his way into Gareth Southgate’s England squad during his loan spell with Crystal Palace.
The 22-year-old grabbed the opportunity by the scruff of it’s neck and showed the country exactly what he was capable of.
He had not done enough during England’s warm-up friendlies to convince Southgate that he was worthy of a starting role against Tunisia, but don’t be surprised to see him start against Panama.
Loftus-Cheek looked energetic and incisive during his 14-minute cameo against Nabil Maâloul’s men, who were unlikely not to earn a point during their group opener.
The Chelsea academy product was fielded on the right-hand-side for the closing stages of the match. He had the beating of his opposing full-back every time.
Along with the entirety of social media, Southgate himself will have no doubt been impressed with the performance. Here’s how Twitter reacted to Loftus-Cheek’s electric cameo:
Ruben Loftus Cheek completely changed the game and was the man of the match imo. His Englands most technical player and is miles better than Delle Ali, he should start against Belgium.
— SCHOLES (@iamscholes) 18 June 2018
Loftus-cheek changed that game, and won the corner from which Kane scored, due to developing at Palace, which makes Palace the rightful World Cup winners. I’m amazed no pundits mentioned this.
— Mark Steel (@mrmarksteel) 18 June 2018
Marcus Rashford and Ruben Loftus-Cheek HAVE to start the next match. Both were class from the bench. #WorldCup #ENG
— 🇨🇴 vs 🇯🇵 Football Tweet (@Football__Tweet) 18 June 2018
Loftus-Cheek trending. Shock. The man is a baller. Made a difference, drove England forward, won the deciding corner that lead to the winner. He’s one of our own. #CFC
— Chelsea Activity (@ChelseaActivity) 18 June 2018
Ruben Loftus-Cheek, you have changed that game.
We don’t overrate our players, we know what we’re looking at.
— HLTCO (@HLTCO) 18 June 2018
Loftus-Cheek should start next match. Changed the game.
— LFC Fans Corner (@LFCFansCorner) 18 June 2018
Ruben Loftus-Cheek needs to start against Panama. No excuses.
— Lav (@LavCFC) 18 June 2018
Loftus Cheek came on and changed the game no banter
— DJRUSSKE (@DJRUSSKE) 18 June 2018
Loftus-Cheek was a real positive for #England. Made a big difference from the bench and added a level of quality.
— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) 18 June 2018