May 16 2018

Ruben Loftus-Cheek

RUBEN LOFTUS-CHEEK has been announced in the England 23-man squad for the FIFA World Cup 2018 in Russia.

The Lewisham-born midfielder, who was on loan from Chelsea for the 2017/18 season, has been picked by former Palace man Gareth Southgate for the World Cup which starts next month.

LOFTUS-CHEEK, who played 25 games for the Eagles, won the man-of-the-match award on his debut for England against Germany in November 2017.

He will hope to continue to impress Southgate during the friendlies against Nigeria and Costa Rica in the coming weeks before the tournament kicks off on June 14.

The full squad is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Butland, Pickford, Pope

Defenders: Alexander-Arnold, Cahill, Delph, Jones, Maguire, Rose, Stones, Trippier, Walker, Young.

Midfielders: Alli, Dier, Henderson, Lingard, LOFTUS-CHEEK.

Forwards: Kane, Rashford, Sterling, Vardy, Welbeck

5 - RUBEN LOFTUS-CHEEK has been directly involved in five PL goals this term in 24 apps (two goals, three assists), this after scoring just one goal (no assists) in his previous 22 games spanning three seasons. Buoyant. #ThreeLions pic.twitter.com/ojtQgcvaPa

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 16, 2018