South African Matthew Booth keeping fit on his own while he waits to sign for a new club

The tall former Sundowns defender is not happy with the way The Brazilians ended things with him, and they have forced him to look for another club while he is injured

Matthew Booth has admitted he could be forced to get back to full fitness on his own before he can find a new club.

The former Bafana Bafana defender has been effectively unemployed since his contract with Mamelodi Sundowns ended on June 30 and has been completing his rehabilitation from home.

And despite reported interest from SuperSport United, Booth admits that the fact he has not kicked a ball since sustaining his injury back in February is putting teams off.

“A lot of people thought I was part of the furniture at Sundowns and were therefore immediately suspicious as to why they let me go,” he told KickOff.com.

“A number of clubs have said ‘thanks, but no thanks’ and there a couple still in the mix, although there is nothing concrete as yet. I could very well have to get fit on my own and then go on trial somewhere locally or even overseas.”

Booth’s agent Paul Mitchell ruled out Santos and Bidvest Wits last week after the 34-year-old left Chloorkop for the last time. So frustrated was he by the decision that the veteran took to social networking site Facebook to vent his anger at Sundowns management, and Booth remains unhappy with the way he has been treated.

He said, “They’ve really got me on the back foot as regards finding a new club. I’ve still got nearly two months to go until I recover fully from my injury and teams are already preparing for the new season.

"Before the injury I felt I still had another couple of years left in me so hopefully I can get back to fitness soon and show what I can do.”