Mamelodi Sundowns will not rush Rivaldo Coetzee as he continues his rehabilitation with the Multichoice Diski Challenge side.
This is according to Sundowns’ MDC team coach David Notoane, who has had the privilege of utilising the defender as he reacclimatises himself with professional football.
Coetzee has been out for over a year with a foot injury which inevitably ended his hopes of moving abroad.
The 21-year-old, who has been seen as one of South African football’s shining light would put pen to paper on a deal which saw him join Masandawana at the beginning of the 2017/18 Premier Soccer League (PSL) season after failing a medical with Scottish giants Celtic.
However, Coetzee is yet to make an appearance for the first team despite being back on his feet, and the reserve team coach has revealed that the club are in no rush to integrate him in to the first team.
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Notoane though, has certainly been impressed with the progress made by the centre back.
“We need to give him some time and the space for him to reach his best form before we send him to the senior team. these things take some time but we are seeing some good progress,” Notoane said according to Phakaaathi.
It has been a miraculous recovery for the former Ajax Cape Town star, who rose to prominence making his national team debut at just 17. Previous reports had suggested that Coetzee’s injury may have seen him call time on his career, but the Kakamas-born player’s exploits for the MDC team has since poured cold water over those reports.
Nonetheless, it now remains to be seen just how long Sundowns fans will have to wait before they can see Coetzee in Pitso Mosimane’s match day squad.
But Coetzee will not have everything his own way when he recovers as he is likely to come across stiff competition with Motjeka Madisha, Ricardo Nascimento, Wayne Arendse and former teammate Mosa Lebusa all vying for a spot in the Tshwane giants’ starting XI.
