Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams admits he is struggling with a “niggle” on his knee after a busy season with Mamelodi Sundowns.
The 31-year-old goalkeeper has played 26 games across four competitions for the DStv Premiership leaders.
South Africa play a friendly match with Lesotho on Thursday before kicking off their Africa Cup of Nations campaign against Mali on Tuesday.
Williams sat out of training while in camp with the national team in Stellenbosch this week, but is nevertheless expected to be selected when Bafana take to the field at the Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium.
“Obviously, it’s tough as much as they try by all means to help us with all the recovery protocols and the rest, sometimes it becomes too much,” Williams said in the Sowetan.
“Especially travelling because the continent is big. One day, you are up north and the next day in the south, so it’s difficult to see towards the end of our campaign in December, we didn’t have the legs.”
Williams added: “It is just a niggle that I got on my knee. It’s something that always comes out when there are a lot of games.
“So, it’s nothing serious. It’s just something that I need to manage, something that I need to look after.
“I’ve been getting wonderful treatment in camp since I got here, so yeah, I will be on the pitch in no time.”