Strasbourg defender Alexander Djiku is taking his recovery from an injury slowly as he nears a first-team return.

The 26-year-old has been out of action for the past three weeks after picking up an injury during a French Ligue 1 match against Monaco.

The initial prognosis wasn't too serious but the centre-back suffered a setback at training - leaving on the sidelines for close to a month.

However, the Ghana international has been working out in the gym and improved his physiotherapy sessions in the process.

He says he will not be in a rush to return to the pitch ahead of Strasbourg trip to Girondins de Bordeaux on Sunday.

“I move slowly. Today, I barely resumed racing. This is a good step. I've been in the gym for three weeks. I do my care with the physiotherapists, it's going very well. If a return to Bordeaux is possible? I will try to come back as soon as possible, but I will not take any risk of a possible relapse. It will be up to the doctors to decide, with my feelings," he said.

Born in the French city of Montpellier but of Ghanaian descent, Djiku was eligible to represent either nation at the international level.

In October last year, he was called up by Ghana for the first time for friendlies against Mali and the 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar.

Playing in defensive midfield, he made his debut in what ended in a 3-0 loss to Mali but returned to his more familiar central defensive role as the Black Stars bounced back with a big 5-1 victory over Asian champions Qatar.

He received a second successive invitation for back-to-back matches against Sudan in the Afcon qualifiers last November, going on to feature in both games.