Pirates legend: What Sundowns’ move means to Lorch’s career

Orlando Pirates’ great Joseph Kamwendo has explained the missing piece of Thembinkosi Lorch’s career he can achieve at Mamelodi Sundowns. The Malawian said Pirates offered the midfielder a limited platform for winning more silverware. The ex-TP Mazembe playmaker observed that the situation might differ with the DStv Premiership serial champions.

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KAMWENDO EXPLAINS WHY LORCH LEFT PIRATES FOR SUNDOWNS

“You want to show your kids, you want to show your close friends and your relatives that you played football at the highest level.  So, I think Sundowns is going to give him that platform. As you can see, Pirates have only won three trophies in [the last] three years…So where he has gone, he has chosen a team that will give him that platform,” Kamwendo said.

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KAMWENDO RATES LORCH AS AMONG STARS OF SOUTH AFRICA FOOTBALL

The former Malawian international spoke to The South African exclusively on Tuesday. We had asked Kamwendo for his opinion on Lorch’s shock exit from Pirates. “It is a big loss big time because when you talk about Thembinkosi Lorch, he is one of the best players not only for Orlando Pirates but South Africa in general,” the Malawian added. He said he was not commenting as a Sea Robbers’ former player but as a neutral. “Pirates, at the moment, don’t have those big-name stars, so Thembinkosi Lorch is a loss for Bucs but a win for Mamelodi Sundowns,” he noted.

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WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR SUNDOWNS’ NEW RECRUIT TO DELIVER?

The 2005/2026 Zimbabwe Soccer Star of the Year further explained why he thinks the South African switched to the Tshwane-based outfit. “As an individual, for sure, Lorch is not the same player anymore. He is growing, so as a football player, you want to end up with trophies,” he said. The Mighty Mukuru Wanderers cult hero has cautioned Lorch on what it would take for Lorch to succeed at Sundowns.

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He said: “He is one of the best players in South Africa. I am not talking as a Bucs legend. I am talking football in general. Thembinkosi Lorch is not an ordinary player. Even for Sundowns to sign him, they know what type of a player or what qualities he is going to bring to the team. It is up to him in terms of how he is going to adapt. If he is going to adapt early, then it is going to be good for his career. But if he is going to take time then it is going to be a problem for him.”

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Kamwendo has since parted ways with Bangwe All Stars of Blantyre after helping them stay in Malawi’s elite TNM Super League last season. He served Bangwe as an assistant to head coach Abel Mkandawire. However, management for Bangwe has replaced Mkandawire with Christopher Nyambose.