Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek admits his slow burn at Stamford Bridge hasn't surprised him.

As he approaches the 100-appearance milestone for the club he signed up with at the age of eight, he is looking ahead to another century with the feeling that form and fitness is finally on his side.

"It doesn't surprise me to be honest," he told the club's website when asked about his lack of league starts as a Blue.

"I've obviously been here a long time but I've had a lot of injuries along the way and I've been out on loan twice now so that's just the way my career has gone. It's quite a low number that I'd like to build on and now is the time to really hit the ground running.

"After my injury, I struggled to come back and regain that fitness or feel confident in my body but now, after a season of playing a lot [at Fulham], I feel really good in myself mentally and physically. I'm in a good position to play well."

His dream to play for Chelsea at senior level never wavered and his self-confidence was a key part of helping him through those challenging moments.

"I've always believed that I could make it but there have just been a lot of setbacks along the way,' he explains. 'Despite that, I've always believed that I could play for Chelsea regularly.

"For me, it's just about staying injury-free and I've been that for over a year now for the first time in my career. There's something I can take from that and I'm really happy with myself.

"The extra work that I'm doing is keeping me on the pitch and available to play, which is the most important thing. On top of that, I have to do the work and play well on the pitch, which always feels natural for me anyway. When I'm feeling good, I generally perform well."