Kaizer Chiefs give Bafana Bafana defender Rushwin Dortley injury update after surgery - 'He is running around a pitch which is nearly empty'

Kaizer Chiefs defender Rushwin Dortoley was injured in March and underwent surgery to repair his knee.

The centre-back is part of the Amakhosi group currently in the Netherlands for pre-season training.

Amakhosi have issued an update on the recovery of the tall central defender who joined the club before the start of last season.

"Rushwin Dortley is running around a pitch, which is nearly empty - well, except for physiotherapist Phumzile Ngobese, who is monitoring the defender's run closely," Amakhosi announced.

"The Amakhosi squad is training at another field of the Dutch amateur side WWNA in Wenum-Wiesell, which is basically next to Kaizer Chiefs' hotel in Apeldoorn. Dortley is partly jogging, at other times he increases his pace."

"This is my first serious injury that needed an operation," Dortley said. 

"One has to be strong mentally, as you want to play, but you can't. It's not easy, but I do know that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

"I have a lot of support from my family. My girlfriend, my father, my mother, my brother... They are all playing a huge role on my road to full recovery," he added.

"That's how the team is. If one is injured, we can all feel the loss of a player. We are one!"

Dortley was injured at a time when he was a regular for both club and country.

He would be hoping to get back to full fitness and reclaim the kind of form which saw him build his name in South African football.

Bafana will be at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations finals in December, and Dortley would be working to go to the continental tournament.

For a player who is not yet participating in full training with the rest of the Amakhosi squad, Dortley might still be on the sidelines for a while.

This might be a setback for coach Nasreddine Nabi who has another defender, Given Msimango, still battling with fitness issues.