Diego Costa could be available for Chelsea’s crucial derby at Arsenal a week on Sunday.
The Blues striker has been out since suffering a recurrence of an ongoing hamstring problem soon after coming on as a substitute during the recent win against Stoke.
Chelsea initially targeted the game at Crystal Palace on 3 May for his return but now believe he could be back in action sooner.
Costa is due to resume full training next week and his condition will be assessed ahead of the trip to the Emirates Stadium.
“He is progressing very well,” Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho revealed ahead of the Premier League leaders’ match against Manchester United.
“We were saying that our target for Diego was to play the last four matches and Arsenal is the sixth [last] match, so if he doesn’t play against Arsenal or Leicester it’s not a problem.
“But he is going so well he has a chance for next weekend. He starts training with the rest of the squad next week.”
Meanwhile, Mourinho is hopeful that Loic Remy will shake off a knock in time for the United game.
The Frenchman missed last weekend’s win against his former club QPR at Loftus Road, where Didier Drogba played up front.
Follow West London Sport on Twitter
Find us on Facebook
This post was last modified on 17/04/2015