Thembinkosi Lorch's move from Orlando Pirates to Mamelodi Sundowns has sparked a debate in the football fraternity.
Nyoso, as Lorch is known in football circles, completed his shock move on transfer deadline day on Friday after almost 10 years with Pirates.
In doing so, the 30-year-old has joined the growing list of players who left the Buccaneers for Downs, which consists of the likes of Teko Modise, Gift Leremi and Oupa Manyisa, among others.
During his time with Bucs, Lorch scored 34 goals and bagged 30 assists in 176 appearances across all competitions since joining the club from then third tier outfit, Maluti FET College.
The attacker previously also had spells with Cape Town All Stars and Chippa United respectively during his early stages with the Soweto giants.
South African football legend and former Marabastad Sundowns player Essop 'Smiley' Moosa has questioned the player's move to the Brazilians.
The Good
"On this Thembinkosi Lorch move you are asking me about, I am reminded of the Orlando Pirates team of our generation and I can't help but feel sad about how things have changed. When I look at the current Pirates team and the side that I played for as a guest player in 1978, there is no comparison. The Pirates teams of the late 1960s and 1970s were great. In my opinion, those teams would have beaten Real Madrid and Barcelona combined. I'm talking about the sides that had players like (Percy) 'Chippa' Moloi, Bernard Hartze, Rashid Khan, Alfred 'Russia' Jacobs, (Edward) 'Msomi' Khoza and (Thomas) 'Zero' Johnson, among others.
"The world missed out on those guys. To me, Chippa Moloi was the greatest player of colour in this country. I used to ask myself questions as to how it was possible for me to be in the same field as him because he was a genius. If he was still alive, he would have taught Lorch how to play. I was 16 when I played against Chippa Moloi for the first time and he had a small body like mine, but I learnt a lot from him through rubbing shoulders with him," said Moosa.
The Bad
"My personal opinion about Lorch is that he is not a great player as he is made out to be. I am honest in saying that I don't rate him and I am really sorry to say that. If he played for Pirates in those years if he was already born, he would not have made it. You are asking me about Lorch and with all due respect to him, I think he is overrated. I wouldn't be in the same side as him. I have watched him play and I don't think he is as good as people say he is. For those who think he is great, I have my doubts about their understanding of the game," he said.
The Ugly
"For Mamelodi Sundowns to go and sign Lorch, I don't understand the reason behind that. You sign him for what? What is he going to do at Sundowns? What I can tell you now which I think is going to happen is that he won't play each and every week. He will sit on the bench because Sundowns already have quality and better players. It is already happening with some of the players at Sundowns and he will join them," he added.
"Calling a spade a spade"
"I call a spade a spade. I don't know Lorch as a human being and I have nothing against him but this is just my opinion of him as a footballer. He might be a great guy, I don't know him, but I am talking about his football ability because I have seen him play," concluded Moosa.
How do you expect Downs to line up with Lorch in the team?
