SuperSport United head coach Gavin Hunt has offered the latest update on the injury progress of the former Bafana Bafana captain Thulani Hlatshwayo.
The experienced defender, Hlatshwayo, has been forced to spend some time on the sidelines due to an injury he sustained in December 2023.
He had torn ligaments on the inside of his ankle when his side suffered a 2-1 defeat to Al-Hilal Benghazi in their CAF Confederation Cup group stage clash at New Peter Mokaba last December.
Hlatshwayo underwent surgery for ankle ligaments on 11 December 2023, which he has been nursing since then.
After the surgery, the ex-Orlando Pirates centre-back was due to be on the sidelines for three to four weeks before he could return to training.
Hunt described Hlatshwayo’s injury as a big blow amidst SuperSport’s busy fixture schedule, competing in the DStv Premiership, CAF inter-club football, and the Nedbank Cup competition.
The 59-year-old coach was speaking ahead of their Nedbank Cup round of 32 against Cape Town City on Tuesday, 20 February 2024.
GAVIN HUNT ISSUES THULANI HLATSHWAYO’S INJURY UPDATE
Coach Hunt revealed that the 34-year-old footballer has returned to training and has started running.
The SuperSport mentor further stated that they have a friendly game on Thursday, and he’s hoping to give him some minutes just to try to get him up to speed given the club’s “centre-back situation.”
“Thulani ‘Tyson’ [Hlatshwayo] has been out now. He has been a huge blow to us because of the centre-back situation,” said Hunt during the Nedbank Cup press conference.
“But he’s running now. We got a friendly on Thursday with reserves in it; hopefully, he could get a game time.
“We will try to get him up to speed for playing certainly for later stages.
The game between Matsatsantsa and the Citizens will take place at Lucas Moripe Stadium at 19:00.
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