Sam Allardyce has revealed that Seamus Coleman will be in the Everton squad for Wednesday’s game against Leicester City, as the right-back continues his return from injury.

The Republic of Ireland captain returned for Everton’s Under-23’s last week against Portsmouth after 10 months out on the sidelines after breaking his leg for his home nation against Wales last year.

He completed an hour against Pompey before being substituted and that has led to his inclusion in the squad for Wednesday’s meeting with the Foxes.

The 63-year-old boss told the media: “Seamus is in the squad for Wednesday and it seems, hopefully, that from here on in, he can have an injury-free run until the end of the season.”

“He is a very important player. But, if and when he does play in the team, he needs time,” Allardyce continued. “He has been out an awful long time, as was the case with Yannick Bolasie. It was such a long period of time out that he cannot be expected to hit his top form immediately.

“But it is very important to have him back, and to have his influence not just as a player but as a person and a human being.”

Mori on the mend

With Coleman’s impending return, Everton’s long-term injury list begins to shrink with only Leighton Baines, Ramiro Funes Mori and James McCarthy sidelined for an extended period.

The Blues hope to have Baines back before long whilst Funes Mori is back in first-team training.

“We are taking it steady with Ramiro,” Allardyce said. “He is training with the first-team but does not do the whole session yet. We are very protective of his knee and are monitoring that on a daily basis.”

The Argentine has stated his ambition to return sooner rather than later as he hopes to possibly win a spot in Argentina’s World Cup squad.

Mori had been expected to return until April at the earliest but, like Coleman, the defender is ahead of schedule and could possibly return in the next few weeks.

Similarly to the Irishman, the 26-year-old will likely join up with Everton’s Under-23 squad for a period of time in an attempt to build up his fitness before returning to first-team action.