ANTOINE Semenyo believes he is on the right track to recovery following shin surgery at the end of the last season.

A January signing from Bristol City, the attacker missed Cherries’ last three Premier League games with an issue that was first described as a leg complaint.

It soon transpired that the best course of action was for the Ghanian international to go under the knife, meaning Semenyo’s first pre-season with Cherries has looked vastly different to how he would have imagined.

However, despite the setback, the forward remains upbeat, revealing he had returned to the grass out in Spain.

Quizzed about pre-season by teammate Jaidon Anthony for Cherries’ website, Semenyo shared: “It's great at the moment.

“I feel like I'm progressing well on the pitch now, doing ball work as well, so I'm progressing really well and hopefully training with the boys soon, so I can't wait.”

The 23-year-old admitted it hadn’t all been plain sailing, especially in the Spanish heat, continuing: “Really tough at the moment, to be honest.

“I can't lie to you.

“Just, three or four days ago, started running.

“So, yeah, I'm finding it tough, but I'm adapting and I know it'll be beneficial for when I'm back playing and training.”

Frustratingly for Semenyo, his last pre-season with Bristol City was also curtailed by a shin issue which was picked up whilst on international duty with Ghana.

Asked by Anthony if this had been his hardest pre-season to date, Semenyo replied: “I think it's my toughest one, to be honest.

“The last two years, I haven't been able to travel and do preseason, so I feel like this is definitely top of the rank. It's been hard in the gym, on the bike, and that's how I running as well, like I said.

“I think I'm screwed on, so I'm taking every day how it comes and making sure that I sleep well and I'm prepared for the next session.”