Soccer-Laduma has received official confirmation from within the Bafana Bafana camp that FC Rostov defender Siyanda Xulu will not be available to play for the national team due to injury.
It was earlier reported that Xulu came off the field in his relegation play-off for Rostov last night, nursing an injury. It's since been confirmed that the player aggravated an earlier injury and will not be available to represent South Africa in their upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Xulu is the third defender to be pulled out of the squad, after Gordon Igesund's team were dealt a blow by the exit of Siboniso Gaxa and Tsepo Masilela.
Soccer-Laduma has also learnt that Igesund is unlikely to replace Xulu with another call-up, and will stick with the current squad available to him.
At Bafana's training camp in Germiston, Igesund explained, "We had bad news, Siyanda Xulu played for his Russian club and was carried off with injury. It's the same injury he had before and I want to report that I won't be replacing him.
"I was prepared for this kind of thing, that's why I named a 25-man squad, I now have the same numbers as I did with the AFCON, I've still got seven defenders, that's why I wont be replacing him."
