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Sundowns’ Mokwena bemoans Kutumela injury ahead of Maritbzurg clash
'Kutumela is still struggling, he hasn't been in the best of conditions since he returned from national duty,' says head coach Rulani Mokwena
Out with an injury, Mamelodi Sundowns’ Thabiso Kutumela will not play against his former team Maritzburg United when the two sides meet in a DStv Premiership fixture on Wednesday. Picture: Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix
Mamelodi Sundowns are arguably playing the finest football in the country and one can be forgiven for assuming that the Brazilians have ticked all the boxes and are unplayable.
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For instance, Downs don’t quite look the well-oiled machine when they are forced to chase shadows, which is something Maritzburg United might look to take advantage of when they meet in the DStv Premiership on Wednesday.
“We live and learn and some lessons for us is that we are not a good side without the ball. We need the ball because we live off the ball and it gives us confidence and enthusiasm because when we do have it, we dominate and we give ourselves opportunities to win football matches,” said coach Rulani Mokwena.
“The other lesson we’ve learnt is that we have to be a bit more ruthless and convert the chances that we create instead of leaving things hanging. The season is long and these lessons will come in handy as we face more challenges this season,” he added.
It happens quite often at Sundowns that when a player is doing well, their progress is hampered by injury and the latest case is Thabiso Kutumela, who was one of the liveliest Masandawana players in the MTN8 final against City Town City, creating a goal for Thapelo Morena.
Kutumela follows the likes of Morena, Khuliso Mudau and Mothobi Mvala, who have had to sit out a couple of matches just when they hit fine form for Downs. The 28-year-old has played nine times across domestic competitions for The Brazilians this season, and his injury stems from the last Bafana Bafana camp where Hugo Broos’ men beat Ethiopia in back-to-back Fifa World qualifiers.
“Kutumela is still struggling. He is not in the best of conditions after he returned from national duty. He has a slight muscular problem on the lower part of the foot, which is an area where he had his operation. But it does not look too severe because I saw him dancing in the change room and I asked him, ‘I thought you were injured’. It was a good sign to see him dancing lightly,” said Mokwena.
