GRANT LEADBITTER will be ready to restart training with the Middlesbrough first team within the next couple of weeks – and his head coach is already looking forward to having him back.

Leadbitter is still a number of weeks away from being considered for a Premier League starting spot because he missed the entire pre-season programme after hernia surgery in May.

But Aitor Karanka, the Middlesbrough boss, has revealed how his captain is closing in on a return to full training with the rest of the squad after making significant progress.

Karanka remains an avid fan of what Leadbitter brings to the dressing room having turned to him regularly during the last couple of years in the bid to take Middlesbrough back to the Premier League.

Despite the frustrations the midfielder has had to endure this season, though, the 30-year-old has still been keen to be in and around the thick of things even if he hasn’t been able to get the ball out and play.

Karanka said: “I hope he will be training next week, or the following week. He's desperate to be back with the team. It will be a big boost, really important for the team.

“Even now when he's not in the training sessions or playing in the games, he travelled to West Ham to be in our changing room, he travelled to Everton and Sunderland because he's a really important part of this changing room.

“He knows and the other lads know. He has a smile on his face - when you're playing in London and when your captain who's been injured for two or three months and he's the first one to arrive, or when you're at Sunderland and he was really disappointed to miss that game, he was still with the teammates and showing his character. Even when he's been injured, he's been with the team - it's been really important.”

Leadbitter was a key performer at the hub of the midfield when Middlesbrough followed up a Championship play-off place in 2015 with an automatic promotion spot in May.

He has been frustrated at what he thought would be a routine operation to solve his hernia problem has taken longer than expected to recover from.

Karanka had suggested earlier this season it could be Christmas before Leadbitter is back in action, although both men are now hoping that it is a lot sooner than that.

Middlesbrough are in desperate need of any lift then can get at the moment after sliding towards the relegation zone; only goal difference is keeping them out of the bottom three ahead of this Saturday’s trip to Arsenal.

Adam Forshaw and Marten de Roon currently hold the two defensive midfield positions, while Adam Clayton is pressing to start against the Gunners. Leadbitter’s experience of playing in the Premier League and Championship would be a handy option at this stage.

Karanka has been criticised for insisting he will not be changing his style of play after the latest slump, even though Middlesbrough have struggled to create chances at the top level.