Jimmy Bullard's return to Hull City is currently three weeks overdue, both medically and emotionally.
After he hurt his knee at Aston Villa in November, Phil Brown stated that he could be ready to return by the end of January, with the game against Wolves at the KC being the target.
It didn't happen, but fortunately it seems to have been just through a slightly off-beam estimation of Bullard's recovery. There has been no setback, no relapse, no complication.
And, for the most part, there has been no emergency in his absence either. Certainly there have been games in the super-skilled midfielder's absence which one feels the Tigers could have won with his input - the aforementioned Wolves game, Bolton Wanderers away, Blackburn Rovers home and away - but the rest of the Bullard-free encounters were against sides of such ability that it was hard to imagine him being able to influence them greatly. The draws with Tottenham Hotspur and especially Chelsea were fantastic results but it's most likely that they would not have altered much in Bullard's presence. And Manchester United would still have beaten us twice even if Bullard had been there, at his most mercurial.
This weekend, poetically, sees City go to West Ham United, the place where Bullard did his original knee injury while making his debut for the Tigers as a substitute in the second half. It is also his first professional club. And, with a spot of luck, it is also the place where Bullard may make his latest comeback.
Three weeks have passed since the initial date of guesswork from Brown came and went, but we've got used to not having Bullard around when the team is announced each week. One suspects, however, that he has been giving encouragement and advice to Tom Cairney as the young midfielder continues to fill some quite sizeable boots. If Bullard does return this weekend, almost certainly as a substitute if so, then the boost it will give everyone, as individuals and as a team, will be enormous.
It will also be timely, given that the Tigers are taking on a relegation rival and, despite the farcical evening at Blackburn, have lately put themselves in a position, even without the prompting of their best player, to avoid the drop.
Bullard is having an influence on things still, make no mistake about it. For as long as he is unable to be inspirational on the pitch, he will be making sure he plays a key part off it. Maybe this weekend will start another period - hopefully a more lengthy one - when he will be doing both. And we can all reap the rewards.
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