Owen Hargreaves' surgeon has suggested the Manchester United star will make his comeback in Saturday's Premier League clash with West Brom.
It is now over two years since Hargreaves played a meaningful senior game for the Red Devils after he was struck down by an acute form of tendinitis in his knees, which he first experienced during his time at Bayern Munich.
Two operations and an extensive period of rehabilitation seemed to have put the 29-year-old back on track by the end of last season, when he completed 45 minutes in a reserve game and was then introduced as an injury-time substitute at Sunderland as United challenged for the Premier League title.
Yet the midfielder's hopes of being fit for the start of this season were wrecked when he experienced more discomfort after his return to training, and he was dispatched back to Colorado by Sir Alex Ferguson for more work with Dr Richard Steadman, who has built his reputation rescuing the careers of people like Ruud van Nistelrooy, who have ruptured cruciate ligaments.
Hargreaves is aware there cannot be many more attempts to salvage his career, and knew his return to England would probably represent his last try.
But Steadman has spoken optimistically about the midfielder's recovery before, and has now revealed his latest first-team return is looming fast.
"Owen should play some part on Saturday," Steadman told BBC Sport.
"Our physical therapist, Luke O'Brien, has been working very closely with United's coaches on his rehab.
"It's been a long road back and there have been some setbacks along the way.
"But I've got a lot of admiration for the way Owen has responded - he's worked very hard and has never given up. Things are looking good for him now."
As Hargreaves has been omitted from United's 25-man Champions League squad, he is restricted to domestic fare until January, so a more obvious comeback date would be the Carling Cup tie with Wolves on October 26.
If Hargreaves does play on Saturday, though, his return will not just be welcomed by Sir Alex Ferguson.
Fabio Capello is in desperate need of someone to play the holding midfield role for England, and knows a fully-fit Hargreaves would fit the bill perfectly.
