Gambia head coach, Johnathan McKinstry, has revealed that Adama Sidibeh would have run the risk of serious injury had he taken a selection gamble with the St Johnstone striker.
Sidibeh scored a double in his country’s 2-0 friendly win over Equatorial Guinea on Friday.
But he wasn’t picked for Monday afternoon’s clash with Uganda.
Gambia drew 1-1 in the Perth forward’s absence.
And McKinstry confirmed that an ankle injury kept Sidibeh out.
“Adama took a knock on his ankle in the first game,” said the Northern Irishman.
“We gave him a rest day and then he trained yesterday.
“He got through it OK, well strapped up.
“But then this morning, the ankle flared up again.
“It was a case of we can’t even have him on the bench.
“It’s not like it was a serious thing.
“With one week’s rest, 10 days’ rest, he’ll be fine.
“But if we played him today it would have risked significant issues.
“So, we decided to remove him from the squad completely.”
McKinstry impressed with Saints forward
McKinstry, though, was impressed with the player he recalled, having left him out of previous squads.
“With Adama’s speed in behind it would have given us an extra option,” he reflected, after Monday’s draw.
“In the starting line-up, we didn’t have an out and out number nine.
“Adama had a really good first game and it was a pity he wasn’t able to be involved today.
“But we’ve been really pleased with what we’ve seen from him this week.”
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