Manchester City have been handed an injury boost as midfielder Ilkay Gundogan joined the rest of the squad back in pre-season training this week.
The 26-year-old has been out of action since December last year, after the Germany international ruptured his cruciate ligament during City’s 2-0 win against Watford in the Premier League.
Pep Guardiola’s side returned to pre-season training on Monday but Gundogan made his first appearance on Tuesday.
The playmaker announced that he was happy to be back in training with the squad on his official Twitter account on Wednesday, and posted a picture of him smiling during his time at the Etihad Campus.
How it feels to be back with the team ??! #crew #trainhard #smile pic.twitter.com/SDgyFjHiSb
— Ilkay Gündogan (@IlkayGuendogan) July 12, 2017
The midfielder only managed to make a total of 10 appearances for the club before he was sidelined with his terrible knee injury.
Gundogan missed a total of 30 games for the Manchester giants, yet he still managed to make an impact during his short playing time as he provided one assist and scored three goals before his injury.
The German was also late in making his debut with the squad at the beginning of the season as he had suffered a patella dislocation, but he continued to impress during his first run-out with Guardiola’s team against Borussia Monchengladbach.
Guardiola and City fans will be relieved to see the pacy midfielder back in action with the rest of the team, and will hope that the former Borussia Dortmund star will be ready to make a return during the opening games of the season.
Another unexpected player to feature in the pre-season training this week was Joe Hart, who was practising alongside new goalkeeper Ederson.
Hart has been linked with a move away from the Etihad this summer, and has had particular interest from fellow Premier League club West Ham.