Bafana Bafana injuries raise concerns over post-World Cup workload

Safa chief medical officer Dr Thulani Ngwenya says an intense run of matches before the recent World Cup in North America may have contributed to serious muscle injuries suffered by four Bafana Bafana players since the tournament.

Mbekezeli “TLB” Mbokazi, Khuliso Mudau, Thalente Mbatha and Evidence Makgopa have all experienced significant injury problems after representing South Africa at the World Cup.

Ngwenya stressed that the players had suffered different injuries and that football’s physical and competitive nature inevitably led to some injuries. However, he said the amount of football played before the tournament could not be ignored.

“It’s different injuries, so it could be different issues, but we can’t take away the fact that if you look at most of these players, the number of games they played leading up to the World Cup was a lot,” he told Sowetan.

“It could be a factor of overload. However, football being a contact and physical sport, players are bound to get injured. In this case, though … muscles may have been highly overloaded.”

Mbokazi, who plays for Chicago Fire in Major League Soccer, was the first Bafana player to suffer a serious non-contact injury after the World Cup. The defender tore a thigh muscle while taking a shot during training.

He played in every Bafana match at the tournament and Chicago Fire initially announced that he would miss the rest of the season. The club later confirmed that he could return before the campaign ends, with the player already undergoing rehabilitation.

Mudau, Bafana’s first-choice right-back, suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon during Mamelodi Sundowns’ 2-0 home victory over Marumo Gallants last week. The 31-year-old, who also featured in all four of South Africa’s World Cup matches, is expected to be sidelined for at least six months.

Orlando Pirates players Mbatha and Makgopa are both scheduled to undergo knee surgery after aggravating their respective injuries at the World Cup.

Ngwenya said clubs needed to make better use of the information supplied by the national team’s medical staff following international camps. He suggested that the players’ workloads could have been managed more carefully before the start of the new season.

“That’s why there’s off-season. Maybe something could have been done in terms of managing their loads leading up to the new season,” he said.

“With the information that clubs get from the medical team of the national team, especially after the World Cup, it becomes easier to manage, or rather assess, the data that you’re given to say, ‘Oh! this player has covered so much ground and distance, so we need to be cautious with him’. Maybe the data could have been used better.”

Ngwenya’s comments come as the four players face differing recovery periods, with Mbokazi potentially returning before the end of the season, while Mudau faces a lengthy absence and Mbatha and Makgopa prepare for surgery.

Sowetan reports that the injuries have prompted renewed focus on the demands placed on Bafana players before and after a major international tournament.