South African footballer Patrick Maswanganyi, better known by his stage name "Tito," has spoken up about the mental and emotional difficulties he faced while playing for South Africa, including how the online hate speech he endured affected his loved ones.

Maswanganyi said that his loved ones had a much harder time coping with the negative attention that was focused on him, even though he had been used to criticism as a professional football player.

The ex-Orlando Pirates winger claims that his family was so devastated by the cyberbullying that they urged him to think about retiring from sports.

He understood that taking criticism in stride was inevitable for a professional athlete. It was especially difficult for Maswanganyi since he could see his family going through it due to the criticism he received on social media. "Everyone knows that I was under a lot of pressure, not really pressure but my family was suffering from the comments that I was getting from social media," he added.

Additionally, he said that his family would often witness the critical remarks and would prefer it if he quit football altogether rather than continue going through the emotional toll.

But Maswanganyi said he was well-versed in the professional football game and that he was prepared for criticism. Making sure his family was safe from the criticism was his first priority.

The soccer player went on to say that he wanted to leave South Africa in part to help his family's mental health.

He thought that by leaving the nation, he might provide his loved ones with some respite from the internet threats and criticisms that had been sent at them.

His admission sheds light on the off-field issues that footballers encounter, demonstrating how the negative effects of social media criticism can go well beyond the athletes themselves and into their families.

Since Maswanganyi wanted to find serenity and safeguard the people closest to him, the choice to relocate was about more than just his football career.

Source: https://x.com/iDiskiTimes/status/2119895018596917445?a=EbTXCd4IHpq_D_XjvY0&s=19