This major injury boost for Wayne Rooney comes amid a real centre-back crisis at Pride Park, with the club currently unable to make any signings due to their current embargo.

Although Bielik predominantly played in central midfield in his 13 appearances for the Rams last term, he has also played regularly in defence throughout his career.

And he could become a vital option to 35-year-old Rooney at some point if the likes of Curtis Davies, Andre Wisdom and Phil Jagielka continue to be prevented from signing a deal at Pride Park by the EFL, who still hold a tight grip over the East Midlands side.

The Verdict:

Although Derby County are currently in a perilous position with a clear lack of signings through the door and just over a week to go until the start of their new Championship campaign against Huddersfield Town, seeing the Polish 23-year-old back running in training is a good piece of news.

The Rams have also suffered a real blow in central midfield over the last couple of days with manager Rooney accidentally injuring key player Jason Knight and ruling him out for over two months. Considering their squad depth is already limited, Bielik is needed back as soon as possible.

However, an ACL injury is one they need to be very wary of when easing the midfielder back into first-team action and he may not be ready for quite a while yet.

With this, Rooney faces the possible dilemma of rushing the 23-year-old back or starting a youth player if their woes in the middle of the park deepen.