WANDERERS are sweating on good news from the United States as Stuart Holden finds out whether he can make his long-awaited Reebok comeback.

Club physio Andy Mitchell has travelled out to the midfielder’s training base in Delaware, and will be hoping to send back good news after a meeting with a knee specialist later this week.

Holden has played just one game in the last 17 months after a succession of injury problems but a potential return to the Whites’ camp would prove a huge fillip to a squad currently short on confidence after a poor start to the season.

And if the verdict is a positive one it will certainly go down well on the terraces, where frustrations have spilled over in the last few weeks.

Owen Coyle has already stated that Holden will not be rushed back into first-team action but it is still hoped the former Houston Dynamo star could be back in club colours by the end of next month.

Compatriot Tim Ream believes Holden’s presence would be a huge boost for the team, but has warned the former player of the year will take time before reaching his peak again.

“It’ll be nice to get him on the field and playing in front of us,” the defender said.

“But he’s a smart guy – he knows he’s not just going to be able to come back, snap his fingers and be ready to go,” he told The Bolton News . “You don't sit out for nearly a year and then just have everything come back right away.

“It'll take time for your touch to be perfect or for your fitness to be perfect.

“Sure, there's a bit of pressure on him to come back and do what he did before but at the same time, we're all realistic with what we expect.

“He'll gradually get there and I think as a team we can help him with our performances out there on the field too.”

Ream has yet to play on the same team - at club level or internationally - as Holden, but has seen enough of him to appreciate what a difference he could make.

“This would be the first time I'll get to play alongside him,” he said.

“Obviously, I watched him a lot in MLS and for the international team but once he left for the UK, I came in, and then when he started getting injured I came in the for US national team. We've kind of been missing each other.

“But he’s the kind of player who could really energise the team.”