Leroy Sane has sparked speculation he could be close to a surprise comeback by training ahead of Manchester City's Champions League trip to Basel.
The German winger was ruled out for six to seven weeks after suffering ankle ligament damage in City's FA Cup win at Cardiff on January 28.
It now appears the 22-year-old, who has scored 11 goals this season, is well ahead of schedule having been involved in a training session open to media at the City Football Academy on Monday morning.
It was unclear whether Sane was fit enough to be included in the squad to travel for the first leg of the last-16 tie in Switzerland but the development was nevertheless encouraging for manager Pep Guardiola.
Sane was also pictured in training last week but Guardiola said his involvement was limited to running only.
Sky Bet make Manchester City the odds-on favourites at 4/11 to win the first leg against Basel, who can be backed as 8/1 outsiders for the victory.
Guardiola was also boosted by the presence of David Silva and Fabian Delph in Monday's session.
Playmaker Silva has missed the last two games with a side injury and Delph, who has successfully filled in at left-back this season, has been out for a month with a knee problem.
Record signing Aymeric Laporte was not involved during the 15 minutes that were open to media under Champions League regulations.
Guardiola was due to update on the injury situation at a pre-match press conference at St Jakob-Park on Monday evening.
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