Town boss Kieran McKenna says he hopes on-loan Arsenal forward Tyreece John-Jules will join the rest of the squad in training in the next couple of weeks following hamstring surgery in November, while Panutche Camara and Dominic Ball are also making good progress.
The 21-year-old joined the Blues on a season-long loan in the summer and had scored three goals in 10 starts and 11 sub appearances before picking up the injury.
"Tyreece we hope will join us in the next week or two, he’s having a last check-up with the specialist to make sure the surgeon and the specialist who he saw are happy with everything,” McKenna said when asked about the England U21 international’s recovery.
"But he’s progressing well, he’s still at Arsenal at the moment, but all being well he’ll return to us in the next week or two and start to progress on to some more work on the pitch.”
McKenna says the Blues have missed the Westminster-born forward: "I think anyone would miss him at this level. I think he’s such a good player, has qualities that are hard to find, so any team would miss him. We’ve certainly missed him.
"The players have really missed him around the group, to be honest, which was maybe more of a surprise because when you have a player coming in from a big club, who has had four or five loan moves you never know how they’re going to settle into the group and how much they will feel at home and that you can make them feel at home.
"But I think he was incredibly settled here and was a really, really popular part of the group from the first week he was here.
"I think the players have really missed having him around, he’s a positive and likeable person and they’re looking forward to having him in the building and if the next few weeks of his rehab goes well, then we’ll look forward to having him as an option on the pitch as well.”
Meanwhile, McKenna is hopeful that midfield pair Camara and Ball will be fit enough to play a part late on in the season.
Camara underwent his third adductor operation just over a month ago, while Ball went under the knife for a knee injury in November.
With Town having 22 players aged over 21 at the end of the January transfer window, the duo will remain registered in the second half of the campaign.
"It’s possible for both,” McKenna said when asked whether there was a chance of either being involved before the end of the season.
"Panutche’s a little bit ahead of Dominic, possibly. He’s working on the grass with the fitness coaches in the very early stages of his rehabilitation on the grass.
"So he’s another few weeks at least with the fitness coaches and then he’s going to need at least a few weeks of good training because he’s missed so much time now since he’s been able to train properly and pain free. But there’s a chance that he’ll be available, certainly in the coming months.
"And Dominic as well, has had a specialist meeting this week, had a positive update from the surgeon and he’s hoping that within the next four-to-six weeks, he’ll be able to return to full training with the group.
"And then it’s another matter getting up to speed ready to play minutes, but he’s really hopeful and pushing to get back on the pitch this season and I think it’s a good thing that we were able to keep the 22 together and give everyone that hope that they can have involvement this season because we’re going to need that positive energy and drive from everyone in the building.”