Everton want Chelsea man as Frank Lampard’s first signing before transfer window shuts: Reports

Everton are looking to bring Ruben Loftus-Cheek to the club from Chelsea before the transfer deadline on Monday.

With Frank Lampard almost confirmed as their new permanent manager, the Toffees now have their sights on making their first signing under him.

They've done a fair bit of business this month with Vitalii Mykolenko, Nathan Patterson and Anwar El Ghazi all coming to Goodison Park in the last few weeks.

Loftus-Cheek is next on their radar, and according to MailOnline, the Merseyside outfit are keen to finalize a deal for the midfielder before Monday.

The 26-year-old has started only seven Premier League games but has managed to make a good impression despite the bit-part role.

Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel also appeared to pour cold water over exit rumors in a recent interview when he said:

"We haven’t talked about it."

"He has a lot of game time, he has a lot to fight for here if we talk about Ruben and my personal opinion."

Juventus have also been linked with Loftus-Cheek as a replacement for Arthur who's wanted by Arsenal, but it's understood Chelsea want to keep him until the end of the season.

Chelsea midfielder's situation has hardly improved since Lampard sacking

When Lampard was still the Chelsea manager, he sounded confident of Loftus-Cheek's future at the club, believing he could become a regular starter.

He said:

"Seeing him play recently, I see him looking fit, fresh and strong. We know he’s an obvious talent so it’s great."

"If he can keep that up hopefully through the season and if he can get back to where he was and more, then I’ll be very happy and he’ll come back as our player, for sure."

"When Ruben was getting fit and was with us, I felt like we missed him last year."

"And when Ruben was getting fit, I was excited because I know the attributes he has and I wanted those attributes at the club."

Despite making over 100 appearances for the club, Loftus-Cheek has never been able to establish himself in the side.

He's remained a bench player while mainly starting in cup games.

The midfielder has spent two impressive loan spells at Crystal Palace and Fulham in the 2017-18 and 2020-21 seasons, respectively. But it hasn't helped him turn his fortunes around in London.