Broos questions Sundowns medics team after 'mass injuries'

As a hamstring injury forced Grant Kekana to leave the Bafana Bafana camp, while a few of his club mates also carry light injuries, worried Hugo Broos has implied the Mamelodi Sundowns medical team is somewhat dropping ball, believing these injuries are not only due to their congested programme.

Kaizer Chiefs' Given Msimango has replaced Kekana in the Bafana squad to face Nigeria and Zimbabwe in World Cup qualifiers. SA take on Nigeria in Uyo on Friday (9pm SA time), before hosting Zimbabwe at Free State Stadium next Tuesday.

"Grant left the camp this morning after the medical check of yesterday evening. The doctor couldn't give us guarantees that Grant should be ready for the game on Friday,'' Broos said before Bafana's first training session at Dobsonville Stadium yesterday, where everybody including overseas-based players like Lyle Foster and Siyabonga Ngezana trained.

"We replaced him with Given. Khuliso Mudau...everybody knows what happened in the [Nedbank Cup] final of Saturday [where he suffered a shoulder injury and still finished the game against Orlando Pirates] but after the medical check, the doctor and the player gave me guarantees that it's not that bad and he'll be ready.

"There's a little problem with Teboho Mokoena, Aubrey Modiba, Bathusi Aubass and Ronwen Williams. It's nothing to worry about but the little problem is there."

Sundowns played a total of 57 games across all competitions this season. Even so, Broos feels that's not the real contributing factor to the injuries their players are sustaining, refusing to outline what he thinks are the real issues as he challenges the Sundowns medical staff to "find the reasons".

"Sundowns had many injuries this season and everybody knows that one of the reasons is certainly the overloaded programme, they played a lot of games but what is interesting is that 75% of these injuries are groin and hamstring injuries and I think there has to be something more than that."

"I hope that the medical staff of Sundowns can find the reasons for that because next season it will be exactly the same...they will have the same overloaded programme, they will play PSL, MTN8, Champions League and there's even  World Cup for the clubs at the end of the season and I am little bit worried because in September, October and November, we have probably the qualifiers for Afcon."

When Sowetan pressed Broos to explain why he says these injuries are beyond the issue of overload, he insisted: "No comment, this is something that Sundowns has to solve, not me. I just see what happens."