Bafana Bafana head coach Molefi Ntseki confirmed that striker Bradley Grobler had to withdraw from the national squad due to injury.
"This afternoon [Monday] after training we got some bad news about Bradley Grobler when he had to go for a scan. The scan results came back differently and we have lost Grobler in the team," Ntseki told the Marawa Sport Worldwide on Metro FM.
"The reason that all this is happening is because of Covid-19. Players started playing not at their best in terms of fitness levels.
"The games are becoming faster and physical and you have players mentally and emotionally getting involved in matches to win.
"We will see a lot of muscle problems because players did not have a proper pre-season to prepare themselves to go into the new season," concluded Ntseki.
Ntseki was already hit with a massive blow as Thamsanqa Mkhize and fellow defender Abbubaker Mobara have both tested positive for Covid-19.
Adding to that, Thibang Phete, Andile Jali, Thulani Serero and Bradley Grobler have also withdrawn from the squad due to "medical reasons".
Ntseki moved on swiftly and called up Musa Lebusa, Vincent Pule, Thapelo Morena, Tshepo Rikhotso and Thabo Nodada.
South Africa host Sao Tome and Principe in back-to-back 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers on Friday (kick-off is at 21:00) and Monday (15:00).
- Compiled by Sport24 staff
