Mamelodi Sundowns are confident veteran midfield talisman Themba Zwane will be ready to play in June’s Club World Cup in the United States.
The 35-year-old is recovering from a serious Achilles injury, but coach Miguel Cardoso said Zwane, although was recovering, he would need time to get fit and ready to play at the highest level.
“For sure, Themba will recover in time, not only for the World Cup, but even to play before,” said Cardoso, who said that Mothobi Mvala, Divine Lunga and Khuliso Mudau were also progressing from their respective injuries.
“They will come much sooner than the Club World Cup. Let's hope because it’s one thing to have physical recovery to play football but another thing is to recover to perform.
“That's another step. You need to understand that. He might be able to train, but to be able to perform is another step.
"We should also understand that because he can train with the team, it doesn’t mean he is able to play a game in high intensity games. That's another thing,” said the Sundowns coach.
“We'll have to prepare him for that. And it's not the same as Mudau that was out for one month, or Divine that stopped for three weeks. Temba has been out for months, so this process will take a little bit longer, but he's working very good. That's what I'm demanding.”