Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Erwin Saavedra has broken his silence on his long injury layoff, while Rulani Mokwena insisted people shouldn’t write the 27-year-old off.
Saavedra joined Sundowns from Bolivian giants Bolivar in February 2022, but has since struggled with several injury-setbacks and only made 10 appearances for Masandawana so far.
His latest injury saw him require surgery in May 2023 and he is since recovering in Bolivia.
“I had a very damaged internal ligament, I had an arthroscopy at the time of the surgery, a part of the meniscus was bad but now I’m waiting to finish my recovery,” he told Tigo Sports.
“I’m doing my rehabilitation here in Bolivia and I have to come back in a few more days.
“These are things that happen to all players, it’s just another experience and I have a lot to go. When it’s my turn to play, I’ll take advantage of the opportunity.”
Saavedra still has a contract until June 2024 and his coach insisted people shouldn’t write him off to soon, as he has all the tools to prove his doubters wrong – if he can stay injury-free.
“Saavedra is still in Bolivia, he had to undergo surgery,” Mokwena said on PowerFM recently.
“And so his rehabilitation he had asked that we allow him to do his rehabilitation in his home country with some experts from Argentina that were recommended to him by his former national team colleagues.
“He’ll be back soon to complete the last phase of his rehabilitation and then we’ll take it from there. A very good player, a very, very good player. And people shouldn’t be fooled, he’s worth the investment that we are making.”
