The defender believes he will play by the end of March as he is ahead in his recovery from a cruciate knee ligament problem.

He suffered the injury against Newcastle in September and was initially expected to miss the whole season.

But the Denmark international – he has seven caps – tweeted he is on course to help Villa stay clear of the Premier League relegation fight this season.

He wrote: "People are asking "when I'm back playing" I be back playing in 2-3 months time."

Okore was injured in just his fourth appearance after a £4m summer switch from FC Nordsjaelland.

The return of the Ivory Coast-born 21-year-old would be a boost for Villa who have lost striker Libor Kozak for the season after he broke his leg in training last week.

Okore's absence has seen Villa struggle to find a regular centre-back pairing this season.

Injuries to skipper Rob Vlaar, Nathan Baker and Ciaran Clark at various stages of the campaign have frustrated manager Paul Lambert.