Maurizio Sarri: Ruben Loftus-Cheek Must Improve Defensively Despite BATE Treble

Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri has called on Ruben Loftus-Cheek to improve on the defensive side of his game despite the midfielder's hat-trick against BATE Borisov on Thursday. 

Loftus-Cheek made his second start of the season and scored all of Chelsea's goals as they won 3-1 in the UEFA Europa League, but Sarri wants to see more from him.

Per the Daily Mail's Adam Crafton, Sarri said: "In the offensive phase, wonderful. In the beginning of the season, I told him he was really a very good player. Now I think the same, but maybe I think also that he is more suitable to my football. He's improving but also he needs to improve the defensive phase. But not only Loftus."

The Italian added that as N'Golo Kante is his only defensive midfielder, Loftus-Cheek is fighting with Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic and Ross Barkley for minutes.

He concluded: "I know the fans love Ruben, of course, because he was in the academy. It's normal. My problem remains the same. It's very difficult to solve the tactical problem without an improvement in the defensive phase of these three midfielders. We can try. We need to work. I need the co-operation of the players."

Loftus-Cheek opened the scoring on Thursday after just two minutes, converting Davide Zappacosta's cross, and he doubled his tally six minutes later when he turned home a corner. A low, curled finish sealed the hat-trick early in the second half.

Goal's Nizaar Kinsella shared the numbers behind the midfielder's performance:

Despite his goalscoring exploits, Sarri made a point of repeatedly giving the midfielder instructions during the game, per ESPN FC's Liam Twomey:

Former Chelsea player and manager Glenn Hoddle expressed his belief to BT Sport on Thursday that Loftus-Cheek may need to leave in the near future if he doesn't receive more playing time.

The 22-year-old is patient and willing to wait for more opportunities, though.

Per the Mirror's Alex Richards, he said:

"Any player will tell you it's nice to score a hat-trick. It feels good. Hopefully there'll be many more to come.

"The first thing in my head is to keep training well, even though I'm playing well it's really important to train as hard as I can to keep fitness up and keep sharp for when times like this do come when I get an opportunity to start or come on.

"So first thing's first, I need to keep up the good habits—eating well, sleeping well and training well, and if I keep doing that then good things will come."

Despite Sarri's assertion that the majority of his midfield options are attacking, his midfield won't score many goals—Kante, Barkley, Jorginho, Kovacic and Fabregas have just four between them this season.

The ability to contribute can help him stand apart from his competition, and his performance on Thursday should at least yield more opportunities in the Europa League and the Carabao Cup.

It's clear he won't be given significant chances until he can meet Sarri's demands, but his attitude suggests he will be doing his utmost to win over the coach.