Derby County's leading scorer Carlton Morris could return after almost three months out injured to face Swansea City in the Championship on Saturday.
The 30-year-old had netted 10 league goals and scored in four consecutive games before sustaining an ankle injury in November's defeat by Watford.
Derby boss John Eustace confirmed that former Luton Town, Norwich City and Barnsley forward Morris could "possibly" feature in the matchday squad again this weekend after a 16-game absence.
"He has trained three times with the group now, but it is really important that we don't push him too much because we don't want to lose him again," he told BBC Radio Derby.
"Let's see how he is tomorrow [Friday] to see if he is involved on Saturday. And if he's not, then I'm sure it won't be long until he is back in the squad in the games coming up."
Morris' possible return could coincide with the much-anticipated debut for loanee forward Sam Szmodics, who was unable to feature immediately after arrival as the Rams faced parent club Ipswich Town last week.
"He will be in the squad, so we will see. I want to give him some minutes, of course I do, but the lads have been terrific so let's just wait and see on that," Eustace said.
Szmodics is a player Eustace knows well, with the forward finishing as the Championship's top scorer in 2023-24 while playing under the now Rams boss at Blackburn..
When asked about Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna's comments about Szmodics' loan departure "not being about football reasons", Eustace defended the player as "a terrific lad and top professional".
"He is a team player, who wants to learn and help others around him. That's my experience of working with Sam," he added.