Raja Club Athletic coach Fadlu Davids has hailed the quality of Thembinkosi Lorch, seeing them first-hand in Morocco, but also insisted South Africa needs to support Hugo Broos and the squad he selected for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Lorch, 32, did not make Broos’ final squad for the Africa Cup of Nations, not even the preliminary squad, despite large parts of South Africans calling for his inclusion.
However, Broos has explained that Lorch is currently not in his plans, and Davids – despite highlighting Lorch’s quality and how well he has been playing in Morocco – has put his weight behind the Belgian tactician.
“With the signing or re-signing of Lorch and [Stephane] Aziz Ki, these are the two players that are really making Wydad a little bit more interesting to watch, because he’s been absolutely amazing. At every attack, Lorch is at the centre,” he said during an interview with the South Africa Football Journalists Association.
“A lot of their team and attacks are going through Lorch. We know he’s the type of player that can win a match for you with one action. He’s not only a player that can play between the lines, he’s a player that uses the space behind the defensive line as well.
“He gives the team so much in terms of creativity, and flair, and what they are probably lacking in their playing style and approach at the moment. So he’s been absolutely amazing.
“At the same hand, I absolutely respect the coach’s decision. We’ve been all speaking about Lorch and AFCON, and he’s up there with the best in South Africa, but the coach has his clear way of playing, and he decides who comes in.
“We have to support Hugo Broos. I’m disappointed for Lorch, because as a player when you’re performing the way you do, outside the country, maybe not appreciated as much than when you do it for Sundowns, Pirates or Chiefs, where everybody sees it on a weekly basis, everybody is talking about it.
“Here [in Morocco], we see it he is well-respected in the league, in Morocco [but] we have to support Hugo Broos in not selecting him.
“I read his comments, I saw his video where he spoke about Lorch – we have to respect him, we have to support him and we have to get behind the national team with the attacking players that the coach selects, because like I said the talent in South Africa at the moment, especially in the wingers, No10s is unbelievable, so the coach has a lot to choose from, a lot of fire-power in the attack.”
Davids himself has started his second stint at Raja with three wins and two draws, and currently sits in fourth place in the Botola Pro – five points behind Lorch’s Wydad but with a game in hand.
He is currently in a training camp in Saudi Arabia, preparing for the second half of the season.
