Bojan Krkic is hopeful that he will recover from injury in time for Stoke City's opening game of the season against Liverpool.
The Spaniard suffered a cruciate ligament injury in January when the Potters played Rochdale in the FA Cup.
The 24-year-old has since undergone a rehabilitation programme back in Spain, and is eyeing a return to the squad when Liverpool come to Britannia Stadium on August 8.
Bojan told Italian newspaper Corriere Dello Sport: "I feel better, it's been four-and-a-half months from that knee injury. Now I'm enhancing muscle tone and I hope to return in time for the start of the season."
The attacker joined Stoke from Barcelona for £3m last summer.
