South African striker Thembi Kgatlana has been ruled out of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations after sustaining an injury in the country’s final group C match against Botswana on Sunday, July 10.
Kgatlana was named the player of the match after South Africa’s 1-0 victory ensured they finished the group stage campaign with a 100 percent record, following their wins over Nigeria and Burundi.
Banyana Banyana, as South Africa is commonly known, will take on North Africans Tunisia in the quarterfinals on Thursday, July 14, but they will have to do without their star player Kgatlana, who recently signed for US based Racing Louisville FC side from Spanish outfit Atletico Madrid.
This means the likes of Jermaine Seoposenwe and Hildah Magaia will need to step up as the attackers in the side, to fill the void left by Kgatlana.
“Thembi Kgatlana sustained a complete rupture of the left Achilles tendon against Botswana, which was confirmed by the MRI scan this morning," Doctor Rodney Mokoka told www.safa.net.
"Unfortunately, she will be out for the whole WAFCON 2022 tournament, and she is due for an operation back home in South Africa.
“Post operation healing will be guided by certain milestones that we have to achieve, of course, a comprehensive functional rehabilitation programme will be in place for her but the quicker we achieve those milestones the quicker she will be back in the field of play.”
The South Africans are determined to win their first ever WAFCON title. Not having Kgatlana around will make the mission a bit harder, but head coach Desiree Ellis has players who are hungry to succeed.
