I am injured, not AWOL – Elias
Kabelo Boranabi | Saturday August 5, 2023 06:00
Elias was a conspicuous absentee in Rollers’ international friendly match against South African giants, Kaizer Chiefs played last Saturday. Earlier this week, reports suggested that the player has not reported to Rollers’ pre-season training, which is now in its third week.
The 28-year-old forward is said to have missed the first two weeks of pre-season without an official reason and the club spokesperson, Pako Lebanna confirmed the player is injured. "Mbatshi has a recurring knee problem and right now he is in camp. This knee problem keeps affecting him. He is in camp, he joined this week," Lebanna said.
Elias told Mmegi Sport this week that he is nursing an injury and should be back with the team upon recovery. “It is not like I am absent without reason’ I am injured. I do not know why people would go around writing such things about me. I am not absent from work, people just assumed that I am missing because I was not playing that game (Chiefs friendly).
They should have asked first before they opened their mouths and say things,” Elias reluctantly told Mmegi Sport on Wednesday. The striker was, however, missing from the Rollers’ injury list ahead of the Chiefs’ game but Lebanna allayed fears the player had gone missing. The list of injured players had Segolame Boy, who was out with flue, Mogakolodi Ngele had just started light training as he recovers from a hamstring injury while Edwin Moalosi and new signing, Sphamandla Sangweni were ruled out due to a groin and an ankle injury respectively ‘King Fisher’, as he is popularly known, is not new to disappearing antics. He went AWOL in January 2022, as he did not report back to training after the festive break during his time with Orapa United.
Elias went ‘missing' again in March 2022 before he failed to show up for training for the third time with Orapa United in April 2022 after the Mascom Charity Cup played in Francistown. At the time, Elias was said to be pushing for a move to clubs in Gaborone and was eventually signed by Rollers in January on a two-and-half-year deal.