Chelsea man says he has a ‘connection’ with Crystal Palace ahead of this weekend’s clash

Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek has said he has a ‘connection’ with Crystal Palace.

The England international had a loan spell with the Eagles back in the 2017/18 season.

His stint in South London was his first away from Stamford Bridge and he went on to play 25 games in all competitions, chipping in with two goals.

Loftus-Cheek, 26, is heading back to face his former club this weekend as Graham Potter prepares for his first Premier League match in charge of the Blues.

‘Love going back’...

The Lewisham-born man has reflected on his time at Crystal Palace, as per Chelsea’s official Twitter page:

“It helped me massively. I was 20 at the time and was seeking first-team football and Palace were a club who came up and Frank de Boer wanted to work (with me) and I wanted to play with him.

“He had a good philosophy going into the season. We didn’t have the best start to the season and Roy (Hodgson) came in and I really developed under Roy.

“I got so much first-team football and I matured as a player and I came back ready to play at Chelsea so that was a really impactful year for my football.”

He added:

“I love going back there (to Selhurst Park). I have a connection with the fans still which is really nice. The stadium is so loud and there is so much energy in it which is not going to be good for us when we are there.”

Loftus-Cheek will be eager to show Potter what he can do to try and become a regular under his new manager.

He has played seven times so far for Chelsea in all competitions this season.

Crystal Palace go into the match having won once out of their opening six clashes this term.