(Image): Ruben Loftus-Cheek trains with Chelsea first team

It’s been a bleak couple of weeks for Chelsea fans, but this is enough to put a smile on any fan’s face.

After almost 9 months out, Ruben Loftus-Cheek stepped up his recovery today, training not only with a ball, but with the first team too.

For once, Frank Lampard wasn’t actually asked about the midfielder’s condition in the press conference today, but he’s clearly on the mend. This is a very significant stage in his recovery by anyone’s standards. We still wouldn’t expect him to be back in the next month or so, but from March we reckon he’ll be ready for some minutes.

You can see the image here:

Chelsea News