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Cape Town - Siboniso Gaxa has pleaded with Kaizer Chiefs fans to be patient with new coach Steve Komphela and the club's new look defence.
Gaxa and Tshepo Masilela were the only regulars when Chiefs' defence conceded three goals for the first time since March 23 last year, when Democratic Republic of Congo's AS Vita put three past them in the CAF Champions League.
That resulted in some of the club's fans making their displeasure known at FNB Stadium, before Amakhosi mounted a dramatic comeback to beat Maritzburg United 5-3.
That defence will look to be tighter against Chippa United on Sunday when they start their Premiership title defence in Port Elizabeth.
"If you start listening to opinions, start listening to people who don't know your plan and vision, you will lose yourself," Gaxa said.
"The same fans who were saying this and that, at the end of the match they were saying something different.
"If you had reacted at half-time from those comments, you can imagine what would have happened after our turn around. You should always respect fans, don't get me wrong because they pay their money to come to the stadium and support the team.
"But sometimes when you are a coach or a player and you know what you guys do every day at the training grounds, you can't listen to someone who says do this when they don't even spend two minutes with you in the training ground.
"Sometimes things take time to work, look at Stuart Baxter. He lost the Carling Black Label Cup and the first game to Mamelodi Sundowns 4-1 in the MTN8.
"People were saying he is useless. But in the same season he won the league and the Nedbank Cup. These things take time.
"You can't judge someone on one game while you have 40 games to play."
