KEVIN NISBET will step up his recovery from long-term injury this week. 

The Scotland international has joined his Hibs teammates at their pre-season training base in Portugal.

The 25-year-old striker has been out injured since February after sustaining cruciate damage.

However, he's now been given the green light to step up his recovery, which will be music to the ears everyone at Easter Road.

He told the Scottish Sun: “I’m with the boys in Portugal which is great and something I was looking forward to.

"It’s tough when you are in the gym on your own every day when the boys are out training.

“I’m working towards running and that’s the next big milestone for me.

“There’s a lot of strength work for me to do, but I’m hoping to be back running within three to four weeks depending on how things go.

“You obviously can’t rush an injury like this, you have to tick off small milestones every few weeks.

“Everything has gone really well so I’m pleased.

“I went to see the surgeon recently to make sure the ACL has healed, and I was nervous about that meeting.

"You do think, ‘What if it hasn’t healed properly?’.

"But he was happy with everything and it’s the best it could be.

“Now I can ramp up the rehab and start to do things I haven’t been able to for months.

“Being out has been a real eye opener for me and I have learned a lot about myself, but I can’t wait to get back.

“I’m still on track to come back later in the year as expected.”