Martin Jol didn't expect swift recovery for Fulham's Mahamadou Diarra

Fulham manager Martin Jol believes that midfielder Mahamadou Diarra's speedy recovery from a knee injury is a "miracle".

The 31-year-old was expected to be sidelined for a lengthy period of time after suffering the injury blow last month.

"Diarra is back," said Jol. "He is almost a miracle, you know? I thought it would be a bit longer, but they always said it could be three or four weeks or possibly longer. He needed an operation and, having said that, he is still coming back. He will be involved."

Fulham go up against Aston Villa this weekend.