Portsmouth handed injury boost over former Arsenal man’s return ahead of Bristol City

And Aussie Jacob Farrell is now closing in on a Blues comeback, after a stalled start to his career in English football.

Swanson has been sidelined for two months with a frustrating heel injury, which put the brakes on a concerted run of first-team minutes this term.

But the former Arsenal man returned to training this week - and is now in contention to feature against the Robins this weekend at Fratton Park.

That bolster Pompey’s options John Mousinho’s threadbare right-back options, where Terry Devlin has been filling in over recent weeks with Jordan Williams also out of contention.

Devlin has excelled when slotting into the role, but Mousinho confirmed he will now have a specialist option in that position.

He said: ‘Zak’s trained this week and he’s back in full training. He’s looking fine and no issues there, so he’s available for selection this weekend.’

Meanwhile, there’s more positive news with a first-team comeback now in Jacob Farrell’s sights.

The Aussie left-back has been restricted to just a single Championship appearance this term, following his summer arrival from Central Coast Mariners on a four-year deal.

Knee issues have slowed the 22-year-old’s involvement in his time at Fratton Park, but he is now earmarked for a return to full training next week.

Mousinho added: ‘Jacob has been out on the grass but is still not back in full training. He’s getting closer and hopefully back with us at some point next week.’