Kaizer Chiefs defender Zitha Kwinika has revealed what he told fellow teammate Siyabonga Ngezana after falling out of favour with fans.
Ngezana was jeered by Chiefs fans after costly mistakes in their humiliating 4-0 defeat to Sundowns and a lapse in concentration in the 2-0 loss to Cape Town City.
The 25-year-old central defender faced a lot of criticism, with some supporters questioning whether he possesses the right qualities to play for the Soweto giants.
“I told him that one day my day will come, so I need you to pull up because we are in this together. If we can count how many mistakes the offensive players make, I don’t know. As defenders and goalkeepers, we are closer to the goal,” Kwinika told the media at Naturena.
The former Stellenbosch FC captain further weighed in on the situation of footballers facing criticism for their mistakes.
“In football, we all signed up for this. It will be tough. It’s not going to be easy. I think that’s where your emotional intelligence comes in. In the phase Siya [Ngezana] went, we pushed him, we supported him.”
“Everyone in the team has made mistakes. Everyone general in life has done mistakes and is still going to do mistakes. So it’s trying to understand that and take it at some point, no matter how hard it is. You need to man up and move,” he added.
Amakhosi host AmaZulu FC on Saturday afternoon for the DStv Premiership encounter. The visitors are a tricky side that has had a good start to the season.
The two sides will again clash in October in the semi-final of the MTN8 Cup. Kickoff at FNB Stadium is at 17:30.
