Aberdeen defender Slobodan Rubezic is on course to return from an injury nightmare in time for the Scottish Cup semi-final.
The centre-back has been sidelined since suffering a knee injury in the 1-1 draw with St Johnstone on January 24.
There were initial fears the 24-year-old could be ruled out for the seaso,n but scans revealed Rubezic did not require surgery.
Interim boss Peter Leven confirmed Montenegro international Rubezic has now returned to non-contact training with his team-mates.
Leven revealed Rubezic is scheduled to return to action in mid-April.
The Scottish Cup semi-final against Celtic is on Saturday, April 20.
Leven said: “Rubi is looking at mid-April, he’s training really well.
“He’s been dipping in and out with us, doing non-contact stuff.
“So hopefully in a few weeks he’ll step up again.”
‘His first contact in duels is one of the best in the league’
Rubezic was signed last summer from Serbian SuperLiga club FK Novi Pazar on a three-year contract for a fee of £200,000.
Aberdeen beat off competition from a number of clubs in Europe to sign the centre-back.
The Dons have the option to add a fourth year to Rubezic’s contract.
Since arriving at Pittodrie, the defender has forced his way into the Montenegro international squad.
Rubezic has been capped three times since signing for the Dons, and scored his first international goal for Montenegro in a 3-1 Euro 2024 qualifying defeat to Hungary last November.
However, his season was derailed when he suffered the serious knee injury in January.
Such was the concern about the severity of the injury, team-mates Bojan Miovski and Ester Sokler held up Rubezic’s no.33 shirt in support of their colleague following a goal in the 1-1 draw with Dundee in January.
Rubezic was a regular starter for the Dons before his injury setback.
He racked up 29 starts, including starting all eight games in Europe.
Since his injury blow, the Dons have registered just one clean sheet in 12 Premiership fixtures – the recent 1-0 win over Motherwell.
Leven reckons the presence of 6ft 4in stopper Rubezic has been missed.
He said: “Rubi’s first contact in duels is one of the best in the league so he’s important for us.
“We’ve missed him.
“He’s a big part of the squad. ”
Rediscovering league winning touch
Leven has been placed in interim charge of the Dons as the club’s hierarchy work on appointing a permanent manager.
The 40-year-old has led Aberdeen to back-to-back Premiership wins, overcoming Ross County (2-1) and Motherwell (1-0).
Those victories have greatly reduced the threat of the Reds being dragged into a relegation play-off battle.
Aberdeen are now six points ahead of Ross County, who occupy the relegation play-off spot, with seven Premiership fixtures remaining.
Leven insists he has tried to take pressure off the players at a time of uncertainty regarding the next permanent manager.
He said: “There have been glimpses this season of how good we can be.
“You’ve seen what the team is capable of in the Europa Conference League and in the cup competitions.
“In the league we haven’t been consistent enough, but did Europe hinder that? Maybe a little bit.
“I’ve tried to take the pressure off of them.
“Pressure can blur your football vision.
“We have got very good football players in this team.”
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