Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane has been boosted by the return to training of Pepe and James Rodriguez ahead of Sunday's game at Celta Vigo.
La Liga leaders Madrid suffered with a long injury list through a difficult January, with their club-record 40-game unbeaten run ended by Sevilla, and elimination from the Copa del Rey to Celta at the quarterfinal stage.
Zidane himself admitted after Sunday's 3-0 victory at home to Real Sociedad that no midweek games for a while now could be a "positive" as the squad refocus ahead of their looming Champions League round-of-16 ties with Napoli.
When the team returned to training on Tuesday afternoon, playmaker James and defender Pepe both took a full part in the session after recovering from muscle complaints which saw them sidelined in the last few weeks, although Marcelo, Luka Modric, Dani Carvajal and Gareth Bale are still sidelined.
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Good news! @jamesdrodriguez and @officialpepe returned to train with the group at #RMCity today! ��#HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/HYgJ1Zaegq- Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadriden) January 31, 2017
"The Real Madrid squad completed their first training session of the week as preparations for Sunday's La Liga clash against Celta at Balaidos (8:45pm CET) got underway," an official statement said. "Ball work took centre stage in a workout which saw James and Pepe train with the group, whilst Raphael Varane trained indoors.
"Zinedine Zidane called up Real Madrid Castilla players Enzo and Achraf for a session in which the Madridistas carried out various possession and pressure exercises, dribbling and shooting accuracy drills and several games on reduced-sized pitches as well as shots on goal. Luka Modric, Dani Carvajal, Gareth Bale and Marcelo, who continue with their recoveries, combined work indoors with training out on the pitches."
Right-back Carvajal remains out with a thigh muscle problem picked up in mid-January, but said at a club foundation event that he expected to be back training with his teammates in a week or so -- making his potential return against Osasuna in La Liga on Saturday Feb. 11.
"I'm working hard to get back and I'm in with the therapist this week, initially without the ball and then with it," Carvajal said. "If everything goes to plan, I'll be back and training with the rest of the squad by next Tuesday."
Speaking at his news conference after Sunday's victory had pushed his team four points clear of nearest challengers Barcelona and Sevilla, with a game less played, Zidane said he planned to make good use of the extra preparation time afforded by last week's Copa exit.
"We cannot think any more about the Copa, we are out of it," he said. "It is not all positive as I would have liked to go through. But now that is not the case, and we must think about the positive side, we will have two full weeks to work and prepare for La Liga games and then the two games against Napoli."
At that news conference Zidane was also asked about a likely return date for Gareth Bale, who has been sidelined since injuring an ankle in late November, but did not say exactly how long more he expected the Wales international to be out.