Carlton coach Michael Voss has confirmed that midfielder Adam Cerra will face Carlton on Sunday for his first game since Round 9.
Cerra has been dealing with a hamstring injury since hurting it in the win over Melbourne early last month with his long-awaited return is expected this weekend following a patient approach from the Blues.
The club's four-game winning run has allowed Carlton to be extra cautious with their approach in bringing Cerra back into the senior side, with "a couple of extra sessions" for the ex-Docker set to have him in good stead for the home stretch to September.
Speaking to the media on Friday, Voss revealed that Cerra was certain to be included after being named in the club's extended squad, with further Round 16 selection calls yet to be made.
"He'll play. The follow-up question is who makes way for him," Voss said.
"We'll wait a little bit longer [before making that call]. But certainly, Adam has put a fair bit of work in over the last seven or eight weeks. We held that a little bit longer than we needed to to get a couple of extra sessions under his belt.
"When you win a couple of games it helps you be a little more patient. He's a very important player to us so we'd like to get him up and going."
Another Blue listed as a potential inclusion is small forward Jesse Motlop, who has also dealt with a hamstring this season and is yet to play at AFL level.
Voss said Motlop won't make his return this week and will remain in the VFL, with the Carlton coach hoping to see "a little bit more" from the Western Australian.
"He's fit and available. We'd probably like a little bit more from Jess," Voss added.
"But at the same time, he's been able to show signs of where we see him. He's a guy who's got great promise for us and he'll make his way back in the team. He won't play this week, but he's certainly playing some better football.
"The advantage we've got right now is that there's a challenge for positions and that's what we want. Form plays a huge part, so do our roles and what roles we're asking players to play."
Carlton has Motlop, Alex Cincotta, Orazio Fantasia, George Hewett, Brodie Kemp, Matthew Kennedy, Caleb Marchbank and Marc Pittonet listed on their eight-man extended interchange.
Young midfield-forward Jack Carroll is the only player to make way from the side that defeated Geelong last Friday, with Cerra, Marchbank, Motlop and Pittonet listed as potential inclusions.
The Blues will trim their squad to 23 players at 5:00pm (AEST) on Friday.
