Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has reiterated that he is not bothered by the noise made regarding his selections for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) squad, especially around Thembinkosi Lorch.
The coach has been open about keeping relatively the same squad that has qualified for the AFCON and the 2026 FIFA World Cup, while occasionally bringing in some new faces into his camps.
The final squad travelling to Morocco later this month also has a few new faces, including the U20 duo of Tylon Smith and Shandre Campbell.
The team with the exception of the European-based players has assembled for the final home camp ahead of the trip to Morocco, and when asked how he has kept the team positive with all the questions around his selection, the Belgian said the players aren’t affected while he will stick to his decision making an example with the relentless questions about the exclusion of Wydad Athletic club winger Thembinkosi Lorch.
Broos questioned if the media has been honest about Lorch’s form from the last two years and not just this season where the player is doing well.
“I read also 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 of the media are not judging a player on his qualities, but just because he’s a friend of them, or maybe they have advantage to write that in the paper.
“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 of the last two years, nobody.
“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 in Sundowns he played a few games, finished. They kicked him out also.
“He went to Morocco, first year… Now, suddenly, the last three months, he played good. Don’t you think that we don’t know that?
“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 decide and that’s all. And the boys I decide or the boys I call up, those are the boys I believe in and they know it. I will never take somebody who I think he 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.”
