Banyana midfielder Gabriela Salgado undergoes surgery after brutal injury in WAFCON semi-final

947’s Robert Marawa speaks with SAFA Chief Medical Officer Dr Thulani Ngwenya. 

Listen below:

Banyana Banyana’s Women’s Africa Cup of Nations dream ended on Tuesday (22 July) after losing 1–2 to rival Nigeria in a dramatic semi-final. 

The game took a turn when midfielder Gabriela Salgado suffered a serious injury in the 83rd minute and the team never recovered.

“[Salgado] broke her leg mid-shaft…  It was a bad collision, and you could see with the players' reactions.”

– Dr Thulani Ngwenya, Chief Medical Officer – SAFA

“She had to be operated on this morning (23 July) and now she is recovering very well.” 

– Dr Thulani Ngwenya, Chief Medical Officer – SAFA 

“We are quite grateful that we’ve got a formidable medical team, including a psychologist and mental coach, because the player needs that.” 

– Dr Thulani Ngwenya, Chief Medical Officer – SAFA 

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the discussion.