Arsene Wenger has named December 16 as the day that Eduardo da Silva will make his long-awaited return to competitive football.
The Croatia international is nearing the end of his lengthy recuperation from a horrific leg injury sustained in a 2-2 draw with Birmingham City in February.
A broken leg and dislocation of the ankle, sustained following a challenge from Martin Taylor, was initially feared to be career-threatening and was deemed so disturbing that television replays were not broadcast.
But Eduardo – who exclusively revealed to setanta.com in September that he would return to action before Christmas – will gain some real festive cheer by featuring for the club’s reserves in a fixture against Portsmouth.
“I believe we might see him for the first time in the reserves on December 16 against Portsmouth,” manager Arsene Wenger told the club’s official website.
“After that we will just go from there but he looks very good and very sharp in training.”