Thembinkosi Lorch 'Finished and done!' Hugo Broos asserts in-form Wydad Casablanca star was 'kicked out' by Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates as Bafana Bafana coach explains decision to snub ex-PSL Player of the Season ahead of 2025 AFCON

Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos insists his main focus is on helping South Africa deliver in international competitions and not to focus on what he feels are unnecessary distractions. 

The tactician has not made wholesale changes to the squad that has been delivering in the last couple of years, where Bafana Bafana have qualified for the 2023 and 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as well as the 2026 FIFA World Cup to be hosted jointly by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

In the final 2025 AFCON squad, Broos opted to include the U20 youngsters Tylon Smith and Shandre Campbell as opposed to having experienced Thembinkosi Lorch, who has been doing well in the Botola Pro League for Wydad Athletic Club.

The former Cameroon coach now claims the media is not reporting all the facts, especially when it comes to Lorch, who Broos states was released by Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns for failing to deliver as anticipated.

“I also read the propositions of the media to take players with the group, and I was laughing. I was really laughing, because this shows again that some people in the media are not judging a player on his qualities, but just because he’s a friend of theirs, or maybe they have advantage to write that in the paper," Broos told the media.,

“Okay, we will talk about someone, so the last three months there is only one name that always came back, Lorch, Lorch, Lorch. Did everyone see the performance of Lorch over the last two years? Nobody.

“He played in [Orlando] Pirates. He was out of the team; they kicked him out. He was happy that Rhulani [Mokwena] was in [Mamelodi] Sundowns. He came to Sundowns he played a few games, and finished. They kicked him out, also.

“He went to Morocco, first year… Now, suddenly, in the last three months, he played well. Don’t you think that we don’t know that?" Broos added.

“But I don’t look at the player like ‘oh yeah, I like Lorch’. No, and look what is his quality, offensively, defensively, can he help the team? When I evaluate that player, I have to say, ‘no, he can’t help us. Finished, done’.

“And then some people can be angry, and some people can call me stubborn, whatever. They do what they want. I just decided, and that’s all. And the boys I decide on the boys I call up, those are the boys I believe in, and they know it. I will never take somebody who I think will not help us.

“So you can write what you want and say what you want, that’s your business, that’s your job also. So I understand that a little bit.

“It’s nice, okay, but it doesn’t affect me at all and I think the media has to know it after four years. So just go and just propose and think that I made the bad choices and so on. It’s your job. Okay," he concluded.

After naming his squad for 2025 AFCON, Broos justified his decision to include the likes of Campbell and Smith in the squad.

“I think the most important thing is that they are still players who are very talented and who played in AFCON, and it was a little surprising that they didn’t release Shandre to go with the U20 team to the AFCON tournament,” he told the media. 

“But I think it’s a great opportunity for those two players to adapt to a higher level of football and to see what’s happening with Bafana Bafana during training. 

"They have a lot to learn in the coming weeks," Broos added.

“I took them for their quality, and we don’t really have to count on them to play in games. However, if the opportunity arises, we can give them a chance. The most important thing for them now is to gain experience with Bafana Bafana, and at the higher level they are confronted with.

“We can give them time to settle into the national team, which is why I decided to take those two players with us now to AFCON. We are also looking at the future; it may be a little easier for them to become regular players for Bafana Bafana," he further clarified.

Having managed to get a bronze in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, Broos hopes to win gold in the forthcoming edition.

He hopes the squad he has selected will not let him down, and the decision to leave some experienced heads like Thembinkosi Lorch out backfires. 

South Africa are in Group B with Egypt, Angola, and Zimbabwe.