Ex-Kaizer Chiefs star warns Khanyisa Mayo 'is not a Siyabonga Nomvethe or a Denis Vukubi' and wants Amakhosi coaches to play him in the right position

Former Kaizer Chiefs striker Denis Vukubi has stated that Amakhosi's new signing, Khanyisa Mayo, has been deployed in the wrong position.

Vukubi believes the Glamour Boys coaches have failed to get the best out of the former Cape Town City star because he plays in a position where he would not be as effective as he should be.

"Mayo is the finisher we've been longing for, but it seems they’re playing him in the wrong position at Chiefs. They need to focus on drill work, get him trained properly, and position Mayo inside the box. They should tell him, 'Boy, your movements should be close to the box,'" Vukubi told KickOff.

"He needs to focus on that area. I saw him playing on the wing for a while (against AmaZulu), and I thought, 'Haaibo! Why is such a dangerous player operating so far from the box?' He is too far from the goal. He is not a Siyabonga Nomvethe or a Denis Vukubi; he doesn't have their pace. We would play out wide but quickly find ourselves inside the box," he added.

Vukubi believes that Mayo should not play far away from the goal because being around the penalty area makes him a lethal player.

"Mayo is strong; he has the physicality. He shouldn’t drift too far from the goalposts because he is a finisher. At Cape Town City, he was always around the penalty area," stated Vukubi.

"We need to play players according to their strengths. Is the Chiefs' technical team doing enough to develop a performance profile for the players? It’s about time they focus on this; we need results. We have talented players at Kaizer Chiefs; now it’s up to the coaches to make it work."

The son of Chiefs legend Patrick Mayo has scored a goal in two games for the Soweto giants. His debut goal came against Marumo Gallants in a Premier Soccer League game that ended in a 1-1 draw.

The forward is serving Chiefs on a one-year loan arrangement from Algerian side CR Belouizdad, who did not register him for the 2025/26 season.

The Glamour Boys are set to play Stellenbosch in the Knockout Cup on October 5 and Siwelele in PSL on October 22.

For now, it is a matter of waiting and seeing whether the men in charge at Naturena will redeploy the forward.