Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos laughed off the constant media ‘noise’ surrounding the exclusion of Wydad Athletic Club star Thembinkosi Lorch.
The Belgian mentor, whose AFCON 2025 travelling squad includes fresh faces like Under 20 prospects Tylon Smith and Shandre Campbell, insisted that he remains completely unaffected by public and media pressure regarding his choices.
Speaking from the final home camp before the AFCON, Broos challenged the honesty of the media’s recent focus on Lorch, questioning why his entire body of work over the last two years was being ignored in favour of a recent upturn in form.
The 73-year-old mentor was candid about his perspective, suggesting that some media recommendations are based on personal connections rather than objective analysis.
BROOS ACCUSES THE MEDIA OF FAVOURITISM ON LORCH
“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 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 an advantage to write that in the paper,” Broos stated.
He then used Lorch as the primary example of the intense scrutiny he faces.
“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 questioned.
Broos went on to detail Lorch’s struggles before his recent form in Morocco: “He played in [Orlando] Pirates. He was out of the team; they kicked him out. He was happy that Rulani [Mokoena] was in [Mamelodi] Sundowns. He came to Sundowns, 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 good. Don’t you think that we don’t know that?”
The coach stressed that his decision-making is purely based on what is best for the team, evaluating a player’s all-around contribution.
“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,” he declared.
The Bafana coach concluded by reiterating his staunch commitment to his selection criteria, dismissing any criticism of being ‘stubborn’ or making ‘bad choices.’
RELATED STORY: Why Broos questions Mbekezeli Mbokazi’s transfer to Chicago Fire