Former Kaizer Chiefs striker Kingston Nkhatha has challenged striker Ranga Chivaviro to up his game after a negative response by the fans over the weekend.
The former Marumo Gallants forward was part of the Glamour Boys team that played SuperSport United in the Carling Knockout's Round of 16 fixture on Saturday, a match they won 4-0 to advance to the last eight.
However, it was not an easy outing for the 31-year-old; he missed two massive chances including a one-on-one opportunity with the Swanky Boys goalkeeper Ricardo Goss. Nevertheless, he eventually took his chance later on to help the Soweto Giants get a valuable win.
Chivaviro celebrated his goal by mocking the fans who had initially jeered him.
You need to improve – Chivaviro told
Nkhatha argues the Amakhosi forward should work on improving because boos from the fans mean he was not getting it right.
“[Booing] is a difficult topic, but it’s not easy to have your own supporters booing you. It feels like you are not important to the team,” the Zimbabwean told Radio2000.
“The coach that’s picking you to play week in and week out knows what you can bring to the team, so it becomes hard for other players because you need a big heart and a big mentality.
“Also, as a player, you need to understand that there is something wrong you are doing that you need to improve. So you must just take it in, don’t fight. Just go home and check what it is that you need to improve to give more to the team.
“It also comes to another point, where if you are not a fan favourite, it will happen. If the supporters don’t like you, they’ll show that they don’t like you. Ranga must understand that fans have favourites, and they don’t understand that players don’t have the same qualities.”
Chivaviro has three goals in the four games played across all competitions, one less than the total number of strikes he managed in the entire 2023/24 campaign.
