AFC Wimbledon assistant manager Neil Cox says midfielder Tom Soares has returned to training, however will not feature against Blackpool on Saturday (September 2).

Soares, 31, missed the final month of last season after undergoing an operation on his ankle and has also been carrying issues with a thigh injury sustained during this campaign.

However, Cox believes Soares has made a “positive impact” this week and also says defender Darius Charles is recovering well after a knee operation.

“Tom is back in full training, which is great news,” said Neil. “He missed a bit of time at the end of last season and has been struggling with a thigh injury, but he has been in training all week.

“He looked really sharp and hopefully we can get him in the under-23s match next week (on Wednesday, September 4). That will be a big positive for everybody.

He added: “Jon Meades is still a bit off, but starting to work really hard. Hopefully, Darius will be back training next week.

“We just have to make sure that he gets through the end of this week and hopefully he can be back next week.”