Mamelodi Sundowns have suffered a major setback after they confirmed that defender Rushine De Reuck sustained a serious injury ahead of the 2023/24 season.

The Brazilians revealed that De Reuck suffered a “freak” injury at training before the club departed for the Netherlands for their pre-season camp.

The 27-year-old will miss Sundowns’ pre-season tour and is most likely to miss the start of the 2023/24 season.

Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena has since provided an update on the defender’s condition and revealed that he has already gone under the knife and is recovering at home.

“It was a very freaky incident at training and it was a pity because he had played the first match of the first friendly [matches] and he had played very, very well.

“He returned back in very, very good shape, but he landed awkwardly and then felt a very sharp pain in and around the knee. Upon observation the doctors felt that instead of being very conservative, the time frame for the layout would be the same as a conservative approach and yet you could get probably greater long-term benefits if you weren’t a little bit more on the surgical route.

“[After thorough] consultation with a knee specialist and with Rushine, we felt that the right approach was to go surgical. The surgery went well, he is already home and the players had him on the phone and we all wished him a speedy recovery.

“Hopefully he’ll be back in time to still continue and make a great contribution to this season because he has got qualities for sure that make us believe that he can be one of our best center-backs.”

“[We wish him] a speedy recovery and he knows that our well wishes are with him and and I’m sure because he’s a strong strong boy, and because also it’s not as bad as it was anticipated upon first observation, I’m sure the boy will be back sooner than later.”

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