The Amakhosi mentor Stuart Baxter also opened up about the team’s difficult pre-season preparations with the Soweto giants set to face Masandawana
Kaizer Chiefs head coach Stuart Baxter has issued an injury update ahead of their eagerly-anticipated clash with Mamelodi Sundowns on Sunday.
The two Gauteng giants are set to collide in the MTN8 quarter-final match which is scheduled to be played at Lucas Moripe Stadium in Pretoria.
Baxter revealed that midfielder-come-striker Lebogang Manyama has resumed training after recovering from his injury, but attackers Dumisani Zuma and Leonardo Castro are still out injured.
“In terms of injuries, Lebo Manyama did his first training with the team. It doesn’t mean he is fit but fit enough to train. We’ve got the ones that are injured long-term, Leo Castro, Dumisani Zuma,” Baxter told the media.
“We’ve got a few other ones that came back late from the Olympics. We’ve got a couple of injuries and we have the players that have taken part in the training. We know they had enough rest, they’ve done structural training with us.
“I can’t see any huge surprises that you will see someone who you haven’t see in training for a few months.”
The trio were noticeable absentees from the Chiefs team which defeated Orlando Pirates in the Carling Black Label Cup clash earlier this month.
Manyama and Zuma also missed Chiefs’ Caf Champions League final against Egyptian giants Al Ahly last month due to injury, while Castro was an unused substitute.
Having been appointed in early June this year, Baxter went on to state that it has been difficult for him to prepare the team for the new season.
“After the final, when I came in we got a couple of league games that I was taking part in and that was a one-off. Then the two semi-finals against Wydad, were a one-off and the final, too,” he added.
“We gave them five days off, some people went to the Olympics and had their five days when they came back from the Olympics. Maybe we haven’t done the work we would’ve wanted to have done at this stage. It will be a work in progress.”
Chiefs duo of Nkosingiphile Ngcobo and Njabulo Blom were part of the South Africa under-23 squad that participated in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games last month.
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