Liverpool’s defence needs to find cohesion fast, Lincoln felt the force with Alan Power and Bastian Schweinsteiger is welcomed back by José Mourinho
It was an afternoon when the ball would not go in for Ruben Loftus-Cheek. The Chelsea attacking midfielder was twice denied by the Brentford goalkeeper, Daniel Bentley, and, when he clipped over him on 58 minutes, the effort came back off the crossbar. Loftus-Cheek had two other moments when he jinked inside the area but could not find a finish. It was, nonetheless, an eye-catching performance from the 21-year-old – in front of the watching England manager, Gareth Southgate – in which he advertised both his power and the deftness of his touch. Could it offer him a springboard into Antonio Conte’s Premier League team? The reality is that Loftus-Cheek has played for only 14 minutes in the league under Conte and the manager has Eden Hazard, Pedro and Willian ahead of him in the wide attacking positions. Patience must continue to be Loftus-Cheek’s friend. David Hytner
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