Rasebotja grateful to Pirates leadership and medical team after overcoming severe injury

By Velile Mnyandu
24th April 2026

Orlando Pirates midfielder Selaelo Rasebotja is full of praise for the club’s leadership, from the chairman down to the staff and his teammates, particularly the medical team, for the support they have provided during his long injury lay-off.

Almost a year ago, Rasebotja underwent surgery after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). It’s been a long wait for him, and he looks ready to go. An injury like this could affect the player’s mentality, and this is where Rasebotja says the club has played a big role in keeping him positive.

"The injury that I had was quite severe; it looked small from the beginning, but when the doctors did the assessment, it was complicated.And thanks to the medical team, the players, the coaches, and the chairman, they were always encouraging me, telling me these things always happen; it is part of the game," said Rasebotja

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"Like I said in one of my interviews, I think the most important aspect that the club dealt with was my mental side. They made all the resources available for me to be right mentally, to be in a good space to recover and come back strong to help the team when the opportunity arises for me to be on the field."

On the medical front, Rasebotja, a former SuperSport United player, says Orlando Pirates medical team has shown its level and played a big part during his recovery process.

Ahead of the crucial Betway Premiership clash against arch-rivals Kaizer Chiefs, in the second and final Soweto Derby of the season on Sunday, Rasebotja says his teammates have done very well this season and are mounting a serious challenge for the league title against a Sundowns side chasing a record-extending ninth consecutive league title.

With six games left in the current campaign for the Buccaneers, Rasebotja makes a valid point, this is a game that should be played on the pitch, not focused on the occasion, as the Bucs bid for their first league title in 14 years.

"Ja, the upcoming game is obviously a very big game. But we are taking it one game at a time. It's a time when we don't want to get ahead of ourselves. The most important thing is to focus on the upcoming games, and I hope that whoever is going to play in the game understands that it's one of the games that needs to be played in the league. We should play the game and not the occasion."