Chiefs missing key players ahead of Mamelodi Sundowns showdown

Giving an injury update during the club’s press briefing at the Taung Village in Naturena this morning, Chiefs assistant coach Cedric Kaze revealed that these players are doubts for Wednesday’s game.

McCarthy, who has been one of the standout players for Chiefs in the first three games of the season, won the man of the match award in the first two league games....

"Aden McCarthy has not trained since Saturday. The medical staff are working very hard to get him back onto the pitch, but we will have to wait and see how he does tomorrow to decide whether he will be a part of the match against Sundowns or not.

"Shinga and Cross have been sick the last two days, and Ighodaro was also injured at training two days ago, but apart from them, everyone is ready for the game," said the Amakhosi boss. 

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Regarding the long-term injuries of Bafana Bafana defenders Rushwin Dortley and Given Msimango, Kaze has provided an update, anticipating that both will be available next month.

This is a crucial game for Amakhosi against a wounded Sundowns team, which has just been eliminated in the MTN8, losing 4-1 on penalties to Orlando Pirates this past weekend in the semifinals.

This game comes at a time when the situation is not stable at Sundowns, on and off the field, with some key players like reigning footballer of the season Lucas Riobeirio and number one right-back and key Bafana Bafana player Khuliso “Sailor” Mudau still embroiled in contractual disputes with the team.

But Kaze says they are not reading too much into this.

"At the end of the day, you have to perform well and do your job on the pitch; the context or the circumstances of the opponent does not matter.

"We do need to keep in mind that we are going up against the eight-time defending champions, and we have told our players not to rely on the outside noise surrounding Sundowns."