Burnley defender John McGreal is closing in on a return to action after being picked for the substitutes bench on Saturday.
Veteran McGreal was declared fit enough to be selected among the substitutes for Saturday's 2-1 home defeat to Birmingham.
The centre-back has missed seven games since twisting his knee in the 0-0 draw against Southend in mid-October, but his re-appearance on the 16-man team-sheet suggests a comeback is not too far away.
However, Clarets boss Steve Cotterill admits the inclusion of McGreal against Blues was a calculated risk.
"John has trained for a week, but he was there because we had no other defenders available," said Cotterill.
"So we had to take a risk and stick him in there a little bit early."
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