Richie Foran, the Inverness Caledonian Thistle forward, could recover from a shoulder injury in time to feature in next month's Scottish League Cup semi-final against Hearts.

It had been thought initially that the Inverness captain - who was injured in a match with Aberdeen last month - would be out for two months but his condition is improving.

"The surgeon feels [that Foran] does not require an operation," said John Hughes, the Inverness manager. "The semi-final is in his head."