Everton midfielder Andre Gomes is targeting a return to action in the match against Arsenal on February 23, manager Carlo Ancelotti has revealed.
Gomes returned to first-team training earlier this week, less than three months after the fracture dislocation he suffered to his right ankle against Tottenham on November 3 - an injury initially expected to rule him out for the season.
'The plan is to prepare him for the game against Arsenal,' Ancelotti said. 'It is an amazing recovery but I don't want to say more.
'I spoke with the player and he agreed, and the medical staff agreed, to have a plan to put him on the pitch against Arsenal.'
Ancelotti said he would consider Gomes as a new signing on a deadline day, where he has no plans to bring in any new faces.
'This is really good news, maybe we can consider him a new player in the transfer market,' he said. 'We don't need to buy others.
'We are not anxious to find new players because we have a big squad... If there was an opportunity we could consider it but I think the market didn't show for us a really good opportunity.
'We have the things to do well this season and after that we are going to have a period where we can improve the squad.'
But while the news on Gomes is positive, Ancelotti said Jean-Philippe Gbamin could need another surgery as he continues his long comeback from the thigh injury which has kept him out since August.
'Unfortunately he had a problem and he had a check with the doctor,' Ancelotti said.
'It may be in the next few days he needs a new surgery to recover him before the end of the season.
'We hope to see him before the end of the season.'