Kaizer Chiefs legend Itumeleng Khune has defended captain Yusuf Maart after his penalty miss in the club's 2-1 loss against Golden Arrows on Saturday evening.
The versatile midfielder stepped up to convert from the sport early in the game after Glody Lilepo was fouled in the danger zone. However, he looked casual before eventually hitting the woodwork. A section of the crowd booed him after the miss, before he sanctified his name with a goal to cancel out Nduduzo Sibiya's strike.
However, the Manqoba Mngqithi-led Arrows got their winner with 10 minutes to go, as Chiefs slumped to their 10th defeat from the 23 Premier Soccer League matches they have played in the 2024/25 season.
Former Bafana Bafana international Khune has now stood with Maart despite the miss, explaining why he should be lauded for his performance rather than the penalty miss.
Maart is a good penalty taker and not casual – Khune
“He’s a responsible captain, despite the criticism he’s been going through, he’s taken the responsibility to raise his hand and be counted. He’s a senior player, he’s the captain,” the 37-year-old said in his analysis at SABC Sport.
“This is how he takes his penalties. People will say ‘he was too casual’, but that’s how he takes his penalties. And before he’s converted a lot of his penalties.
“He is a great penalty taker because he uses both his feet. The way he was standing you will never know whether he is going with his right or left, or to the left-hand side or to the right. But the goalkeeper stood, waited for him, even though he didn’t get a touch, he went to the right side,” Khune concluded.
