Southgate blames Chelsea stars for holding Loftus-Cheek back

England manager Gareth Southgate blamed Ruben Loftus-Cheek's failure to break into Chelsea's first team on the club's stars who feel threatened by the promising midfielder.

Loftus-Cheek attracted plenty of attention following Saturday's Man of the Match performance against Germany - his senior debut for the Three Lions.

Increased interest in the youngster has triggered a debate over his struggle to impress at the club level after making under 30 appearances since his Blues debut in 2014.

While there's few who doubt his potential, Southgate feels that Loftus-Cheek's loan spell at Crystal Palace this season will be valuable after Chelsea players stunted his progress.

"He has been able to battle through difficult spells at Chelsea, training with senior players who recognise his talent so get into him in training," Southgate said, per Liam Twomey of ESPN FC.

"Have they kept him in his place? Yes, I imagine they probably saw the threat.

"This season, going out and playing, has helped him. In the early season I saw him (for Palace) and he showed flashes of what we saw against Germany. I think he can affect big matches like he did."

Southgate added that the 21-year-old still has plenty of room to grow, saying Loftus-Cheek is capable of adding goals to his arsenal by working on his game in the final third.

Loftus-Cheek has already surpassed his appearance total from last season after featuring in seven Premier League matches for the Eagles.