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Patosi stands up for Rantie

Ayanda Patosi of Belgium side KSC Lokeren OV. Picture Credit: Gett Images
Ayanda Patosi of Belgium side KSC Lokeren OV. Picture Credit: Gett Images

Ayanda Patosi has offered his support to Bafana Bafana striker Tokelo Rantie following the player's penalty miss against Algeria on Monday night.

Belgium-based Patosi was left out of the final 23-man squad named by Shakes Mashaba for the Africa Cup of Nations, but has been a keen observer of what has been going on in Equatorial Guinea and sympathised with his former teammate.

Rantie has come in for a torrent of abuse on social media platforms following his penalty miss.

"I believe in you Tata," Patosi wrote on his Facebook page alongside a picture of himself and Rantie at a national team camp. "In football people turn their back on you so fast and forget what you did before.

"That's why we are professional players, we know how to deal with such problems. So stop talking, tomorrow the same people will praise you. Head-up."

The penalty against Algeria was not the first that Rantie has taken this season - he scored from the spot for his English Championship side Bournemouth in their 8-0 rout of Birmingham City in October.

Former national team striker Benni McCarthy led the criticism of Rantie's decision to take the kick.

"There are four Pirates players in the Bafana squad who I used to play with," McCarthy said on SuperSport after the game. "Out of all those four, Rantie is the only one who never took penalties. Even at training sessions, Rantie used to miss penalties.

"I was the number one penalty taker at Pirates, which means if I wasn't playing [Andile] Jali or [Oupa] Manyisa used to step up."

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