Ousmane Dembele to return to full Barcelona training two weeks before El Clasico at Real Madrid

Ousmane Dembele has confirmed he will be back in full training in two weeks, giving Barcelona fans fresh hope he will be available for the visit of Real Madrid in the first El Clasico of La Liga on 23 December.

The France starlet has been on the sidelines since rupturing the "tendon in his femoral bicep in his left thigh" during the Catalans' 2-1 victory over Getafe on 16 September.

Three days later Barcelona announced that the 20-year-old forward was going to be out of action for three-and-a-half-months after being force to undergo an operation to address the issue in Finland.

Dembele was expected to be on the treatment table until the New Year, missing around 20 games in total, including the highly-anticipated trip to Real - the final game before the two-week winter break.

However, earlier this month Dr Orava, the specialist who conducted the surgery, suggested that Dembele could return slightly ahead of schedule and in time to play some minutes against Real.

"Could he play against Madrid? Maybe, maybe... but I can't assure you of anything," Orava said on 7 November. "Right now he is training in the sandpits that Barça have and I think that in the middle of November he'll be able to touch a ball again."

Last week, Barcelona also provided another positive update on their website, showing footage of Dembele undertaking a series of high intensity sprints at the club's training ground.

And Dembele himself has now confirmed that will take another step in his recovery in only two weeks by returning to full training with the rest of his teammates.

"In two weeks, I will start working with the group again," Dembele told Canal+.

"The treatment programme [has helped to make a quick recovery] Yeah, I'd say so. It is tough. I have worked every day, even holidays and every Sunday."

Dembele should there be back in training on Monday 11 December when Barcelona begin preparation for the La Liga clash with Deportivo la Coruna on 17 December.

The clash with the Galician side might still come too early for the France starlet but he could be ready to play some minutes against Real a week later.

Dembele's return will be a major boost for Ernesto Valverde ahead of the second part of the season after he moved to Barcelona in the summer in a deal worth €105m (£93.9m, $125.3m) plus €40m in add-ons to fill the gap left by Neymar's departure to Paris Saint-Germain.

Barca have coped well without him, with Valverde's side topping La Liga table four points ahead of Valencia and eight clear of Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid after 13 games.