Brentford striker Scott Hogan stepped up his rehabilitation from a serious knee injury this week but is unlikely to return to full training until pre-season.
The 22-year-old suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage in August shortly after arriving at the club from Rochdale in the summer.
Hogan went under the knife in September before travelling across the pond to Philadelphia in January as part of the recovery process.
He has has now begun working on the grass at the Bees training ground and could be involved in light training with the rest of the squad before the end of term.
However, Brentford doctor Neil Greig has told fans to be patient with the forward and insists the club will not be rushing him back too soon.
“Scott has had a significant knee injury,” said Greig. “He was in a brace for six weeks.
“The common belief is that three months after suffering this sort of injury a player should be running outside.
“However such a timescale driven programme often leads to disappointment and running at that stage was never in our minds.
“Getting Scott strong is relatively easy, however producing powerful movements quickly will take some time.
“But that dimmer switch needs to get turned back up before Scott can start football specific activities.
“Mark Warburton is supportive of our approach. He would like Scott back as quickly as possible but, more importantly, he wants him back and staying back.
“The report from the surgeon said that Scott should be looking at a pre-season return, Bill Knowles also reiterated that message.
“I don’t think it would be in the player’s interests for us to go against the advice of guys who are leaders in their respective fields.”
Meanwhile, Brentford are sweating on the fitness of James Tarkowski for tomorrow's trip to Charlton after he went off with a back injury in the 2-1 defeat to Watford.
