From Youth Team to Champions League: The Rise of Ruben Loftus-Cheek at Chelsea

A little over six months ago, Ruben Loftus-Cheek was captaining Chelsea's under-18s to FA Youth Cup glory over Fulham at Stamford Bridge.

Now he's a Champions League player.

The majority of footballers go their whole career without appearing in Europe's elite club competition, but Loftus-Cheek has ticked that box in his list of career milestones at only 18 years old.

In 2013, he played two post-season friendlies against Manchester City, but this was the real thing.

"I didn't think [playing in the Champions League] would come so soon. It's the perfect Christmas present for me," Loftus-Cheek told Bleacher Report after the game.

"It was a surreal experience for me, but I enjoyed it very much."

There's still plenty for the midfielder to achieve in his career, but Wednesday's substitute appearance against Sporting Lisbon has capped off his meteoric rise through the Chelsea ranks.

Joining the Blues as an eight-year-old, he has developed into one of the club's finest young prospects.

Paul Gilham/Getty Images

When Loftus-Cheek was just 14, he made his debut for the under-18s, and he hasn't looked back since.

He joins a long list of Chelsea greats to have captained the club in the junior ranks, including Ron Harris and Terry Venables, who himself led Chelsea to FA Youth Cup glory in 1960 and 1961 when they won it back-to-back.

That generation of Chelsea youngsters has since gone down in the club's folklore. Alongside Harris and Venables were the likes of Peter Bonetti, Bobby Tambling and Bert Murray.

Others later joined their number in the 1960s, including John Hollins, Peter Houseman, Alan Hudson and Peter Osgood, the greatest of them all.

Paul Gilham/Getty Images

Now Loftus-Cheek and the rest of Chelsea's current crop are hoping to become just as significant in the club's history.

"This is a pretty exciting time for us," Loftus-Cheek added. "The boss is giving us opportunities, like me and Dom [Solanke] in the Champions League, and I'm sure the other boys will be working hard to try and get experience like this as well.

"There's a good bunch of young players coming through. All through the ranks we have great teams. It's just about us as young players wanting to go forward and break into the first team."

Loftus-Cheek has shown he is a player capable of doing that.

Paul Gilham/Getty Images

He wasn't selected by Jose Mourinho as a token gesture on Wednesday or as a favour to the club's academy. He was picked as he is a player with the credentials to break the mould in west London and establish himself as a regular.

It's often highlighted that John Terry was the last player to properly achieve that at Stamford Bridge, yet now there's a real possibility a group of youngsters will change the agenda and rewrite Chelsea's reputation.

Loftus-Cheek is powerful player. He's quick and talented in possession, outlining his ability in that area when playing out of position against Sporting.

Replacing Cesc Fabregas, he joined the attacking midfielders operating behind Diego Costa, and he held his own for the 10 minutes we saw him.

For Chelsea's development teams, he has played further back in the pivot, where we see Nemanja Matic plying his trade.

Mourinho will like Loftus-Cheek for much more than his ability as a footballer, though. The 18-year-old may be junior in years, but standing at 6'3" and weighing in at 82 kilograms, he has the physique of a middleweight boxer.

Loftus-Cheek can hold his own as a player. When the time calls for it, he's more than capable in the physical battles the Premier League throws up in midfield, too.

His story is a unique one in the modern game.

The corporate impact of football has brought unimagined riches that have given clubs the power to import youngsters from across the globe.

Alastair Grant/Associated Press

At the highest level in England, it's becoming less and less common to see local, indigenous talent coming through. It's about the cosmopolitan game, and nowhere is that approach represented most than in the Premier League.

However, Loftus-Cheek and team-mates Dominic Solanke and Lewis Baker, among others, are showing it is possible that young Englishmen can succeed at Chelsea.

He has led the club to glory in the junior ranks, and as he continues to rise, he will be hoping to repeat his achievements with the first team.

After the Champions League, who knows what's next? The possibilities for Loftus-Cheek are endless.

Garry Hayes is Bleacher Report's lead Chelsea correspondent. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter @garryhayes