West Ham forward Andre Ayew has started light training as he steps up his recovery from a serious thigh injury. Ayew joined West Ham from Swansea in a deal believed to be worth more than £20m but endured a disastrous start to his Hammers career.
The Ghana international was substituted just 34 minutes into his Premier League debut for Slaven Bilic's side and is not expected to be available for the first-team until late November.
But Ayew's rehabilitation is on track and he is stepping up his workload to ensure he can cope with the rigorous demands of top-flight football when he returns.
"Andre Ayew is continuing his rehab from the thigh injury he suffered in the opening Premier League fixture at Chelsea in August," said Stijn Vandenbroucke, Head of Medical and Sports Science.
"He is entering the stage, a mini pre-season, where he needs to get significant fitness work under his belt in order to cope with the demands of the Premier League and adapt to the new biomechanics following a significant injury, basically hard work day after day."
Having spent the majority of the summer searching for a marquee striker, Ayew's injury proved to be a significant blow as fellow summer signing Simone Zaza has made a slow start to his career in English football.
West Ham have struggled for form in the early stages of the campaign and are currently languishing in the relegation zone.
The east Londoners have won just one of their opening seven Premier League games and need to secure a positive result when they travel to Crystal Palace this weekend to pull clear of immediate danger.