The Welshman has been sorely missed this season with his absence meaning that, the occasional moment of individual brilliance from Laurent Robert apart, the side has lacked any creativity or cutting edge.
"We could have Craig Bellamy back by the end of January,” Sir Bobby told the Evening Chronicle.
“Originally we were talking about early to mid-February but there's a feeling within the club that he could come back a bit earlier.
"He's keen to get going again and we have missed him."
Bellamy’s pace, will to win and understanding with Alan Shearer will certainly be welcome and it’ll be good to see someone giving some of our less committed players an earful when they deserve it.
And I’m certainly not going to miss the look of total bemusement that’s been on Shearer’s face every time one of his strike partners has got the ball in past couple of months.