Orlando Pirates have been dealt a major setback ahead of their Nedbank Cup clash against unpredictable Cape Town City on Wednesday night.
In-form Bucs attacker Luvuyo Memela has been ruled out of the encounter after failing a late fitness test.
Memela has been in scintillating form this year and has scored five league goals for Pirates‚ including a wonderful brace that helped the Bucs defeat bitter rivals Kaizer Chiefs 3-1 in the league two weeks ago.
According to Bucs official website‚ the 30 year-old Memela has been receiving treatment after injuring his ankle in a friendly match four days ago.
"The club’s medical team is working around the clock however‚ to try and get him back into action ahead of Pirates’ next league match against Golden Arrows‚" the club said.
Meanwhile‚ defender Diamond Thopola has made a full recovery and has since been cleared to train with the rest of the squad.
"Goalkeeper Wayne Sandilands‚ is making progress on his injury (finger) and has started to participate in select team training drills which involve passing and distribution however‚ he has not yet been cleared to be involved in shooting drills which require him to catch balls‚" the club said.
The two clubs have met three times with two of those matches ending in draws and Pirates winning the most recent league encounter earlier this season.
Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package. 