Ruben Loftus-Cheek handed first England call-up in six years after injury blow | OneFootball

Ruben Loftus-Cheek has been awarded his first England call-up in seven years after Thomas Tuchel’s squad suffered an injury blow.

The AC Milan midfielder was called upon for the upcoming international clashes against Andorra and Serbia after Adam Wharton was forced to pull out of the squad with an adductor injury.

Wharton was dealt the injury in Crystal Palace’s 3-0 win over Aston Villa on Sunday evening, hobbling off in the second half at Villa Park.

Oliver Glasner confirmed Wharton would have to withdraw from the England camp post-match, saying: “Hopefully, it’s not too serious. We will make scans tomorrow so they (Wharton and Ismaila Sarr) can’t go to the national teams and then let’s see.”

This opened the door for Loftus-Cheek to re-enter the fray, with Tuchel calling upon the 29-year-old to fill in, although this hasn’t yet been officially confirmed by the FA.

Loftus-Cheek has not featured for the Three Lions since November 2018, when he was still a rising star at Chelsea. He was called up in March 2019 but withdrew from selection.

The midfielder has since left Stamford Bridge and is now into his third season at the San Siro, where he has established himself as a regular fixture. He has made 71 appearances for the Rossoneri, scoring 11 goals and notching three assists.

While his last season was plagued by injuries, he has started the new campaign in good form and netted in Friday’s 2-0 win at Lecce.

Loftus-Cheek has played 10 times for England and is in line to add to that tally over the coming fortnight, with England back at Wembley to face Andorra on 6 September.