Siegrist could return in Dundee derby as he joins training again

BENJAMIN Siegrist is back in training at Dundee United and could put himself into shock contention for a derby day return next weekend.

The Swiss keeper had been expected to be out for several months after a freak training ground injury three weeks ago.

Trevor Carson has proved an able deputy during that time and earned a starting slot for Northern Ireland last week.

However, after getting the all-clear in a scan, Siegrist has resumed light training and hopes to win back his place.

He is expected to offer United a major boost by picking up the pace during next week’s Dundee derby build-up.

And Tannadice boss Tam Courts has refused to rule out bringing back the fans’ favourite for next Sunday’s visit of Dundee.

When asked if Siegrist could face Dundee, Courts said: “There is a chance as he could be back in full training next week.

“It’s hard to say for certain whether or not he’ll be back for the derby. He needs to go through a few different things from a training perspective.

“Knowing Benji, the way we all do, he’s trying to push the boundaries of his rehab.

“He sees the games coming up and he wants to be part of that. Benji’s well on track.

“It is a bit of surprise he could be back so quickly.

“That’s the great thing about getting him scanned so quickly and being able to rehab and look after him here.

“We anticipated that it was going to be potentially a long injury. But, as it transpires, it might not be.

“To start with, we recognised that it wasn’t going to be a matter of days, or maybe even weeks.

“It’s just been a nasty twist in the end.”

Benjamin Siegrist has been out for three weeks.