Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert has confirmed that Richard Dunne has finally been given the green light to resume training.
Dunne has yet to feature this season after suffering a groin injury on Euro 2012 duty with the Republic of Ireland during the summer.
Lambert has insisted that he will not rush Dunne back and has no idea when the towering defender will be ready for a first-team return.
He told Sky Sports News: "Richard is back in training and it's his first time since the European Championships really.
"Will he be back soon? I'm not sure really because he's got to get up to speed with training and get some games under his belt.
"He's still a wee bit away."
The 33-year-old has been forced to undergo two operations in the last few months to try to find a permanent solution to the groin problem.