Chiefs’ Maart explains why criticism motivates him

Yusuf Maart is one of the players who have taken to their career at Kaizer Chiefs like a duck to the water but his new Amakhosi journey has not gone without some criticism. 

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While his performances have awed most of the supporters, Maart has also had to endure some harsh words and he says he appreciates that. 

In fact Maart takes it on the chin when he is criticised and uses it as motivation instead of letting it poke holes in his confidence.

“To be honest, if you are a hard worker and the supporters know what talent you have, if  you make a mistake they will always be on your case because they know what you can do.

“They want the best for you. And I understand it sometimes,” said Maart when asked about the naysayers. 

The former Orlando Pirates midfielder said playing in the national first division with Sekhukhune United toughened him up as a player. 

“I played in the MDC (at Pirates) and the first division is harder than the MDC. I learnt a lot in the NFD, the football there is different to the premiership,” says Maart.

“There are a lot of things I learnt there. It made me harder and more aggressive. I now understand when to be aggressive because that league is something else and it made me who I am.” 

And joining Chiefs was obviously a dream come true for Maart, but things have not been smooth sailing. He however believes that Chiefs will soon be an unstoppable force. 

“It is still early in the league and everyone is trying to find their feet and get where we want to be. 

“Everyone is still learning and as soon as everyone finds their feet and we start gelling then we will get what we want,” explains Maart. 

“As a footballer you cannot panic. You cannot play with fear because if you play with fear you will never enjoy the game. We are getting there and eventually we will get going.” 

On adapting to the way things are done at Chiefs, Maart says: “It has been good because it is football after all. If it is a new system you just need to adapt. Fortunately the system that Chiefs is playing suits me so I adapted easily.”