Harambee Stars defender Joseph Okumu is expected to miss up to three weeks of Ligue 1 action after picking up an ankle injury in training during the week, which ruled him out of their match against Strasbourg on Saturday.
Reims felt the full effect of missing the stalwart Kenyan defender as they ended up losing 3-1 to the Patrick Vieira-coached outfit, which leaves them in seventh place and puts their European football hopes in jeopardy.
The Will-Still coached side is hindered by a worrying injury list that also includes Teddy Teuma, Benjamin Stambouli, Mohamed Daramy and Maxime Busi, while Zimbabwe midfielder Marshal Munetsi was suspended for the match.
“Joseph Okumu will be out for three weeks with an ankle problem,” Still told members of the press before the match.
Okumu has already suffered two separate injuries since joining the French outfit from Belgian side KAA Gent. In November, he missed both of Kenya’s opening 2026 World Cup qualifying games against Gabon and Seychelles after picking up a hamstring injury, and in February, was ruled out for three weeks with an adductor problem.
There is optimism the ankle injury he picked will not rule him out for the season, which will make him fit in time for Kenya’s next games against Ivory Coast and Burundi.
UPDATE:
— Mark Kinyanjui (@Kiinya_Y) April 14, 2024
Harambee Stars defender Joseph Okumu is expected to miss three weeks of Ligue 1 action for Reims after picking up an ankle injury.
As a result, he missed their match against Patrick Vieira's Strasbourg on Saturday, which they lost 3-1.#FootballKE pic.twitter.com/Ef2TyrcHbB