- Yannick Bolasie trained with the Everton first team at Finch Farm on Thursday
- The winger suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury in December 2016
- DR Congo international has been training with the reserves over the past week
- Bolasie has made 15 appearances for the club since moving from Crystal Palace
Everton have been boosted by the long-awaited return to first team training of winger Yannick Bolasie.
The DR Congo international, who has made just 15 appearances for the club since a £25million move from Crystal Palace in the summer of 2016, has not played since December 4 last year after suffering a cruciate knee ligament injury which has required two operations.
However, the 28-year-old has been training with the reserves over the past week and finally re-joined the first team at the club’s Finch Farm training complex on Wednesday.
Yannick Bolasie smiles during Everton’s training session at Finch Farm on Wednesday
Bolasie (2nd left) jogs with his team-mate as they warmed up at the start of the session
Bolasie looked in good spirits as he took full part in the session with the team preparing for Thursday’s Europa League clash with Atalanta at Goodison Park.
The former Palace man, still some weeks away from returning to competitive action, has hailed the Toffees medics for helping him to remain focused during his recovery.
‘It’s been a difficult road and I think the hardest part, obviously, is trying to stay in good shape. I did go all over the place at one point but now I’m in very good nick, so I’m happy,’ Bolasie told The Everton Show.
The DR Congo international has not played since last December after suffering a knee injury
The 28-year-old (right) looked in good spirits as he shared a joke with Ademola Lookman
‘The medical team have been great with me and they gave me permission to get away when it was appropriate.
‘The year out, to be honest, doesn’t feel like a year for me because it was broken up a lot and now I’m coming to the end. I’m just really looking forward to getting back.
‘If you ask the medical staff, they’ll probably tell you I’ve been very moany! I guess that’s just down to the expectation and the demand that I put on myself to get back. But I know when I really need to be patient as well.
‘Like I’ve always said, I couldn’t ask to be in a better place than I am. I’m still taking it each week as it comes and hopefully I’ll be back soon.’
Bolasie suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury against Manchester United in December 2016
The winger has made just 15 appearances for Everton since joining from Crystal Palace