Arsenal will not be signing Ruben Loftus-Cheek anytime soon after Chelsea decided they want to send him out on loan for the second half of the season rather than sell him.

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The rumours of Arsenal’s interest started with a throwaway line in a Mail on Sunday article about Harry Kane. It hasn’t taken long, however, for them to be slapped down with ESPN reporting that the club still see a future for Loftus-Cheek at Stamford Bridge.

The 22-year-old Chelsea midfielder is under contract until 2021 and, although Loftus-Cheek impressed on loan with Crystal Palace last season, he has struggled to get much playing time under Maurizio Sarri.

In total, he’s played 99 minutes and started just once. He hasn’t even been part of Chelsea’s Premier League match-day squad since 1 September.

That’s in stark contrast to last season when he was a regular starter for Palace, amassing 1,965 minutes, two goals and five assists. Palace, unsurprisingly, are also interested in re-signing him when the window opens in January.

The Mail on Sunday said Loftus-Cheek will ask to go on another loan when the window opens at the start of 2019 and it seems as if the club will grant him his wish.

Arsenal, as we know, are looking around for a midfielder with Aaron Ramsey set to leave, either in January, if they can get a fee for him and convince him it’s time to go, or, at the latest, in the summer.

Everton are also said to be interested in Loftus-Cheek who will have no shortage of suitors should Chelsea decide to let him go when the window opens.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gNaupCt05I

Loftus-Cheek is currently valued at around £16.2m but we all know with the ‘English Premium’ he will probably go for a lot more than that when he does eventually move.

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