Leeds United have been handed a major fitness boost ahead of the start of pre-season as their key player returns

Tomorrow marks six months since Pascal Struijk was last seen in Leeds United colours, but the defender is finally making progress ahead of the start of pre-season next week. The 24-year-old went under the knife in March after a nagging groin injury failed to heal sufficiently for three months.

That decision ended Struijk’s season early and put the clock on his return for pre-season. Struijk was a mainstay under Daniel Farke in the first half of the season and wore the captain’s armband in the absence of Liam Cooper and Luke Ayling.

As a player of such importance, he will feel like the proverbial new signing when pre-season begins next week. Struijk’s presence will give everyone a huge boost after more than six months on the sidelines since that penalty signing at Deepdale on Boxing Day.

Ahead of next week’s scheduled return at Thorp Arch, Struijk has joined the legion of players posting their summer fitness routines on Instagram. While Archie Gray, Joe Gelhardt and Charlie Cresswell were among the professionals working in Dubai, Struijk disappeared with a simple photo on the track.

Sitting on a running track, Struijk took a picture of himself in his running shoes and included a running emoji at 26C. The Dutchman will be very keen to make a good impression at the start of this summer after so long.

With Joe Rodon back at Tottenham Hotspur and Liam Cooper in the final week of his Leeds contract, Struijk, Cresswell and Ethan Ampadu are Farke’s main centre-back options. It remains to be seen what role Diego Llorente or Max Wober play in pre-season for the Whites.