Bradley Carnell addresses Blom’s struggles after his St Louis exit

Bradley Carnell has addressed Njabulo Blom’s struggles after his departure from St. Louis City, SC. The two worked together at the MLS side for 18 months, and Carnell had recruited Blom from Kaizer Chiefs in December 2022.

Blom enjoyed a stellar debut season, but his form declined in his second season, which coincided with Carnell’s departure. After a string of poor results, the club axed the former Bafana Bafana defender in July 2024.

Two months later, Blom was loaned out to Chiefs, where he has struggled to recapture his old form under Nasreddine Nabi. Carnell has shed light on the reasons behind Blom’s less-than-stellar performance in his second campaign.

WHAT CARNELL ATTRIBUTES NJABULO BLOM’S STRUGGLES TO

“I think it’s got to do with competition,” Carnell told FARPost recently. “It’s got to do with the moment you find yourself in. I don’t think Njabulo was the fittest at the time that I left.”

The newly appointed Philadelphia Union head coach, Carnell, added that the arrival of Chris Durkin, a defensive midfielder, from DC United further complicated matters for Blom.

“So for him to come into the team [ was not easy], and then we acquired a new player at the beginning of the season – Chris Durkin, a different profile of a holding midfielder.”

While adding Durkin gave the team depth, he believes Blom’s pre-season, which was hampered by injuries, affected his competitive edge. “Njabulo not being at his best or his fittest because his preseason was a bit hampered, he couldn’t get going as much as he had liked. I think it became a catch-up now. I don’t think all playing cards were equal.

“I think he had to play some catch-up. Unfortunately, he ran out of time to get up to speed with what was happening during the season. And then the club made a decision [to loan him out].”

Blom has made five starts at Amakhosi this season and has featured as a substitute four times. However, he has found it difficult to establish himself as a regular starter. The Soweto-born midfielder’s loan runs until the end of the season.

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