Vusumuzi Dube
Fungai Muderere, Senior Sports Reporter
PLYMOUTH Argyle coach, Wayne Rooney, has issued an update on the injury and possible return of Warriors defender, Brendan Galloway.
Combative Galloway missed out on an international call from Zimbabwe for the first two 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers due to a hamstring injury.
The defender was dropped from the Warriors squad on the eve of the international break. The Warriors played two identical nil all draws against Kenya and Cameroon in Uganda last week.
So impressive was the country’s flagship side against Cameroon under new coach, Michael Nees as they refused to be bullied by five-time African champions and even restricted the Central West Africans to zero shots on target, in a Group J African Cup of Nations qualifier at Mandela National Stadium last Tuesday, evening.
Zimbabwe are now on two points from two matches, while Kenya, who beat Namibia 2-1 on Friday, top Group J with four points.
Cameroon have four points from their 1-0 win against Namibia in their opening game last weekend.
Legendary Rooney, a former Manchester United gunslinger, was hoping to have the Zimbabwe international and Darko Gyabi, the loan signing from Leeds United who had a groin problem, available for selection for Plymouth’s league clash against Sunderland yesterday.
“I think they will both be fine and hopefully available for selection on Saturday,” said the coach, as quoted by Plymouth Live.
In a separate interview, Rooney emphasised the need to manage Galloway’s recent injury issue carefully.
The coach said: “With Brendan, we need to be careful, especially with his knees. He has had injuries before, so we need to be careful.”
Galloway initially joined Argyle on a short-term deal in the summer of 2021.
He immediately impressed with a series of classy performances on the left of the Pilgrims’ back three, but suffered an injury in October 2021 that would end up ruling him out for the rest of that season.
Galloway played 24 times as Argyle were promoted as Sky Bet League One champions in the 2022/2023 season, which triggered an extension to his contract.
Before arriving in Devon, Brendan spent the majority of his career playing in the top two leagues in English football, joining Everton as a teenager from Milton Keynes Dons.
During his time at Goodison Park he caught the eye of English national selectors and played age group football for England from Under-17 to Under-21, but would later make his international debut for Zimbabwe, the country of his birth.
Galloway had two loan spells while still at Everton, playing for West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League and Sunderland in Sky Bet Championship, before signing on a permanent basis at Luton Town, where he spent one before joining Argyle. —@FungaiMuderere
Online Reporter