AS Kigali FC Head Coach Eric Nshimiyimana says midfielder Rashid Kalisa is injured and that he doesn’t have a mental problem, something that Amavubi coach Vincent Mashami recently said while giving an overview of the team’s performance in the CHAN 2020 tournament.

Nshimiyimana said this after the Confederation cup tie that pitted his side against Tunisian side CS Sfaxien, where the hosts were eliminated on a 5-2 goal aggregate over two matches.

When asked whether Rashid Kalisa, who plays for the club in the middle of the pitch, has a mental problem as suggested by coach Vincent Mashami, Nshimiyimana shrugged off the claims adding that the midfielder is injured and that people who have never played football wouldn’t know.

Mashami didn’t play any professional football while Nshimiyimana played for APR football club and the national team, Amavubi. He is one of the players who represented Rwanda at the 2004 African nations cup.

"Kalisa doesn't have a mental problem, it's an injury. I played professional football and can tell when a player has a mental problem unlike him (Mashami) who didn’t play football at a professional level," Nshimiyimana said.

The 24-year-old midfielder was substituted in all of Rwanda’s group stage matches saying he was injured and Mashami said despite asking to be taken off during the matches, Kalisa was always good during training sessions the following day, something that baffled coaches and the national team’s medical department.

However Nshimiyimana said that he had spoken to the player and the club’s doctors and that the midfielder was injured during his time at CHAN but forced himself to play to help the team perform well.

The AS Kigali coach said the midfielder will have a scan soon to know exactly what injury he is carrying but added that it could be a meniscus injury.

The Ministry of Sports covers costs of treatment for players who suffer injuries while playing for the national team.