Africa-Press – Eswatini. The Eswatini Football Association (EFA) Medical Committee has reportedly stopped Moneni Pirates star Yeki Khumalo from playing football for now.
The Pirates dynamic midfielder was not part of the Moneni Pirates side, which lost 5-3 on penalties to Mbabane Highlanders in the 2023 Bible Society Mayoral Cup, which was played at the Mavuso Sports Centre on Saturday. Inkunzi Emnyama, as Highlanders are affectionately known, were eventually crowned champions of the pre-season tournament, after shaking off a stubborn Denver Sundowns after the dreaded penalty shoot-out. An impeccable source close to the team, when quizzed about the absence of the player from the game, allegedly disclosed that the ‘Sea Robbers’ of Moneni received a correspondence from the EFA Medical Committee, chaired by Welcome Motsa, stopping the player from taking part in the games. “The team received a letter from the EFA warning them against using the player for now, as he was expected to be taken to cardiologists to assess his medical condition,” the source said.
The source went on to highlight that according to the letter; the player was not officially halted to play football, but would return after the check-up from the specialist. Meanwhile, Moneni Pirates Public Relations Officer (PRO) Sibusiso Nkambule confirmed that they received the correspondence from the EFA Medical Committee, stopping them from using the player for now. “Yes it’s true; we got the correspondence through our team medics, who recommended that the player should be taken to cardiologists for a thorough medical check-up. The cardiologists would be the ones to have a final say on whether Yeki continues to play or not,” Nkambule said.
recommendations
He said they received the message with both hands as the life of the player comes first to them and they would act on the recommendations from the medical committee. “We will act swiftly as the red flag has been raised concerning the medical aspect of Yeki, as he is one of the best upcoming attacking midfielders in the country and we hope that he will return soon,” Nkambule added. He then urged the entire nation as well as Pirates supporters to put the player in their prayers in this difficult time of his career. The national team’s Under-20 attacking midfielder was diagnosed with a heart challenge while in Italy for trails, which were cut short after failing medical tests early this year. He went there alongside Nsingizini Hotspurs forward Mayibongwe ‘Suarez’ Mabuza.
On the other hand, FIFA-accredited and South African Football Association (SAFA) Chief Medical Officer Thulani Ngwenya, who was recently in the country for a two-day medical workshop for local elite medics, revealed that it was normal for athletes to have an abnormal heart as this was caused by exercising, which he said was a stress to the heart. He made an example of Moroka Swallows’ Andile Jali, who missed the 2010 World Cup due to an abnormal heart, but after he was taken to a sports cardiologist, he was declared fit to continue playing.
Meanwhile, according to a 2018 global study, cardiomyopathy or arrhythmia is a common heart condition in youths. It is a disease of the heart muscle that makes it harder for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body.
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