Wolverhampton Wanderers head coach Gary O'Neil has hinted that Matheus Cunha may be involved in Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final against Coventry City.
Cunha has not made an appearance since suffering a hamstring injury during the 2-0 defeat to Brentford in the Premier League on February 10.
At the time, the expectation was that the Brazil international - who has not been named in his nation's upcoming squad - would be absent until at least after the international break.
However, the versatile attacker has made his return to team training this week, and O'Neil has indicated that an appearance versus the Sky Blues is not out of the question.
Speaking to reporters at a press conference, O'Neil said: "He [Cunha] has done really well, incredibly well. He's in a great mood and the lads are really pleased to have him back in training.
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"It's an unbelievable effort for him to get back into full training as quickly as he has. It's now on us to manage him the best way we can and get the best out of him.
"We were expecting to be without him a lot longer than we have been. We're delighted to have him back in training and it's given the group a real lift."
Cunha's involvement would come as a huge boost to a Wolves squad that currently has Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, Pedro Neto and Hwang Hee-chan all on the sidelines.
Hwang sustained a hamstring injury against Brighton & Hove Albion in the previous round, while Bellegarde and Neto suffered knee and hamstring issues during the 2-1 victory over Fulham last weekend.
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While Hwang's absence is a certainty, O'Neil has remained coy over the potential involvement of the other two players, refusing to provide an update on their availability.
The Englishman added: "We've decided not to do injury updates today, with a big game tomorrow. Any injury updates I'll save for after tomorrow. Once the teams are announced I'll be happy to answer more questions."
Should none of the injured contingent be fit enough to start against the Championship side, Mario Lemina could be used further forward to help Pablo Sarabia and teenage forward Nathan Fraser.
Craig Dawson is also a major doubt with a groin injury, with Santiago Bueno in line to keep his place in defence.
Darren Plant
