Nottingham Forest players have been enjoying a return to training for the first time in more than two months.
The Championship campaign has been suspended due to the coronavirus crisis since early March, with nine rounds of fixtures still to play.
But following the first round of mass Covid-19 testing among second tier clubs, the Reds have taken to the grass again ahead of the English Football League hoping to restart the action next month.
Sabri Lamouchi’s men sit fifth in the table, 10 points off second-placed West Bromwich Albion, as they target a place in the Premier League.
And players took to social media to mark being back at the Nigel Doughty Academy.
There was the welcome sight of full-back Tendayi Darikwa being among them.
The defender suffered a ruptured ACL on the eve of the season and has yet to feature under Lamouchi.
He posted a picture on Instagram of himself running, while keeping a safe distance from teammate Matty Cash, and said: “Good to be back.”
Cash, meanwhile, wrote: “So good to be back out there.”
Midfielder John Bostock uploaded a video of himself and centre-back Yohan Benalouane being reunited - also at a distance - saying: “Great to be back! #finally.”
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Benalouane posted: “Happy to be back. Let’s do it.”
Initially, Forest will take part in non-contact training, following social distancing guidelines.
However, the government have outlined “stage two” of its guidance which enables competitive and close-contact training.
The guidance, published in conjunction with public health officials and sports medical officers, allows for organised, close-contact training, under carefully controlled medical conditions.
The advice is geared towards establishing the conditions for stage three of the process, which is expected to be achieved next month with a resumption of sports, including Premier League matches, behind closed doors.
