The summer signing is back and available after a period out injured

The deluge of Christmas adverts already dominating our television screens is enough to put everyone on alert that the festive season is almost upon us. I say almost upon us, it's seven weeks away and we've not even had bonfire night yet, but tell the supermarkets that!

While the sensible among us are keeping the Christmas tree packed away for a while yet, for Hull City goalkeeper Jack Butland Christmas has certainly come early.

The experienced goalkeeper was City's first signing of the summer following promotion to the top flight, when he arrived from Rangers with Ivor Pandur going the opposite way. There was excitement about a deal bringing in an ex-England international, and that excitement went both ways with Butland eager to seize a chance back in the Premier League after three years north of the border.

Butland had impressed during the Tigers' pre-season training camp in Slovenia and then Turkey, before bad luck struck when he damaged his elbow in training on the day City flew out to Germany to face Eintracht Frankfurt. Surgery was needed and with that came an expectation the goalkeeper would be sidelined until Christmas.

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Well, while it's not Christmas for some time yet despite what the adverts suggest, Butland is back fighting fit, having pushed himself hard to return ahead of schedule. Having been back in the squad that faced Ipswich Town at the weekend, he'll now be competing with Kostas Tzolakis for the number one jersey.

"I've got a bit of a spring in my step, if you like," Butland tells Hull Live, with his demeanour certainly backing that up.

"It's been a difficult couple of months, but I am back on the pitch, and with no restrictions and fully involved in team training now, so I'm happy to be back there.

"It just couldn't have come at a worse time. It felt like I'd made a really good start with the games I played in pre-season. Felt like I was fitting in really well with the lads, but you play the game long enough, you'll spend time on the sidelines with injuries. It's part and parcel of it, so as gutted as I was, it seems to have gone by fairly quickly, and I'm looking forward to being back."

Butland was back on the MKM Stadium grass at the weekend, warming up with Tzolakis and Phillips before the 2-2 draw with Ipswich Town. He then made his comeback on Monday night, playing 90 minutes and keeping a clean sheet for City's Under-21s in a 1-0 victory over Derby County.

Their thrilling draw with Ipswich may have been their fifth of the season so far, but it kept them unbeaten at home and with just two defeats in their opening nine Premier League matches, which Butland says only adds to the growing belief in the group.

"I think it's been brilliant, to be honest, I think," he continued. "The side piece to it was the fact that everyone was sort of writing us off early doors, beating Man United at home, first game of the season; they give everybody, if we didn't have the belief already, but really reinforced it that we are capable of fighting and doing well in this league.

"So much so that we've been disappointed when we haven't got wins and picked up points. That's the mentality in the group: disappointment when we don't pick up points, and a validation when we do, but it certainly seems the way that it's been is that we're not here to just make up the numbers and have a good year; it's to stay in the league and do well.

"We've just been humble; we've been humble about what we are and how we want to be; we've not tried to reinvent the wheel and be something we're not.

"We know what we are, what we're about, and we know the core values of the group and what the fans expect to see of us on the pitch. With that, we've obviously added some brilliant talent in the window, that's gonna help us to stay in games, to win games.

"That core value that clearly the boys had last year in getting promoted has remained, and I think that's gonna hold us in good stead this year.

"It's tough not to get carried away with the bright, shiny lights of the Premier League and try and lose sight of what you're actually here to do.

"I think the manager and all the players have remained extremely focused on what's at hand, enjoyed the moments when it's been really good, assessed things when they haven't been quite so good. I just think in general they've been a really humble group that are looking to really fight and show what we're about."