LIVERPOOL -- Roberto Martinez says that Everton need to help Leighton Baines overcome the fear of further injury before restoring him to the team.
Baines, 30, has not played a competitive match since May because of an ankle problem that needed two operations.
The left-back was on the verge of a return after his first bout of surgery when he aggravated the injury in a freak training ground accident in August.
And Martinez admits that the club need to build up Baines' confidence before throwing him back into action.
The England international is physically fit for Saturday's Premier League trip to Bournemouth -- but according to the manager, it is a case of assessing whether he is mentally ready.
Martinez said: "Physically, from a medical point of view, Leighton is ready. It's just about making sure now that we give him the right introduction to get that match fitness.
"More than anything, it's getting the confidence back, to be able to go into a 50-50 challenge without feeling fearful, when you get an injury in the manner that he got his.
"He was just blocking a simple ball. He was in a good position. We need to be very careful that we give him his confidence back and we prepare his body to be really strong.
"We'll take it day by day. It's been great to see him back in training. The quality he brings is quite impressive. We'll assess it, and we'll make a decision tomorrow in terms of him being involved for the Bournemouth game."
Baines needed a second operation after damaging his ankle when the ball hit it as he was making a block tackle in training on Aug. 6, two days before Everton's opening Premier League match against Watford.
He was in contention to make a comeback against Aston Villa last Saturday, but Martinez decided against including him in the squad.
The manager added: "There's no pressure to rush him. I think it goes the other way round. It's about giving Leighton what he needs. As a team, we have to adapt towards that.
"There's no point rushing Leighton back and then losing him for the rest of the campaign. It's important that we give him the right adaptation period. It's a period of time that's going to be very, very important.
"And then we need to make sure that when he's back, we can use his freshness, his quality and experience for the rest of the campaign."