Trent Alexander-Arnold has described each day as "a new step" as he continues to recover from the thigh injury that kept him out of Euro 2020.
The Liverpool wing-back was originally named in Gareth Southgate's England squad for the rearranged tournament, but was injured in the Three Lions' warm-up friendly against Austria, forcing his withdrawal from the 26-man party.
Brighton's Ben White took his place in the team, which has since reached the semi-finals, but back home their missing star says he is well on the road to recovery.
What has been said?
“Every day’s a new step, every day’s getting better, getting fitter and I think going into pre-season we’ll be good,” Alexander-Arnold told BBC Sport during England's 4-0 quarter-final win over Ukraine on Saturday in Rome. “Obviously I’ve had a few weeks of rest and then I’ll be hitting the season and trying to push on from there.”
Asked on the frustrations of missing out for his country - having been a member of their Russia 2018 World Cup squad when England also reached the last four - Alexander-Arnold pulled no punches, adding: "It's disappointing for me not to be there.
"At the end of the day, it still puts a smile on my face seeing the lads go far, the nation getting behind them - the supporters everywhere have been amazing. To know all the lads and a do few weeks with them, they're going to do us proud."
Alexander-Arnold's absence
At only 22, Alexander-Arnold remains one of England's most promising young talents of the future, but it is a testament to the number of options Southgate possesses that his injury has hardly broken the stride of his side.
Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier and Reece James are among those who have operated at right back so far at Euro 2020, with each bringing sharp dimensions to the Three Lions' gameplan.
Having started at right-back in England's third-place match against Switzerland at the 2019 Nations League Finals, suggestion that Alexander-Arnold could have missed the tournament after he was dropped for March's international break sparked furious debate among fans.
His eventual inclusion - and subsequent injury - ultimately rendered the point moot in a cruel blow, one from which the wideman will look to bounce back from this coming season ahead of the Qatar 2022 World Cup.