Kaizer Chiefs have confirmed that Siphiwe Tshabalala has been ruled out of action, at least until some time later this month.
The club have revealed that the attacking midfielder has picked up an adductor muscle injury and it's likely that he will only make his return in time for the PSL encounter against Golden Arrows on October 22.
The 29-year-old has played a lot of football for both club and country recently and it appears that the workload has finally taken its toll of his body. However, it seems his injury isn’t too serious and he will return in a few weeks' time.
Chiefs’ physiotherapist, Dave Milner confirmed Shabba’s injury on the club’s official website.
He said, “Siphiwe Tshabalala has suffered an adductor muscle injury. He had a scan which showed muscle damage. He should recover before our game against Golden Arrows in Durban on the 22nd of October 2013.”
Tshabalala’s absence could provide Lucky Baloyi, Mandla Masango and Josta Dladla with an opportunity to play in the midfield. Additionally, Siyabonga Nkosi could also see more game time in the attacking midfield role that Shabba often fills.
Alternatively, coach Stuart Baxter could opt to play a 4-3-3 system to cater for Tshabalala’s absence.
This could see Knowledge Musona, Kingston Nkhatha and Bernard Parker supported by Nkosi, Letsholonyane and Willard Katsande.
Nevertheless, while losing a player of Shabba's calibre is always a big loss, there do appear to be options for Baxter to choose from in his absence.
