Last season's La Liga top scorer has not played since injuring his knee on September 27 and although Barcelona are top of their league and through to the Champions League knock-out phase, they have dearly missed his goals.

Eto'o trained alone from mid-January but has now joined his teammates and is hoping to make his first team comeback on February 11 against Racing Santander.

Argentine starlet Lionel Messi could also be back for the same game as he is on the mend following a foot injury suffered in November.

Barcelona's results have been inconsistent without the pair, although with Real Madrid seriously short of form and surprise-package Sevilla starting to stumble, Barca have managed to hold onto top spot.

But with a vital Champions League second round clash with the notoriously tough-to-break-down Liverpool on the horizon, the return of the star pair is a welcome boost for Dutch coach Franck Rijkaard.