Mauricio Souza hopes John Herdman will lead Indonesia to the 2030 World Cup
JAKARTA - Persija Jakarta coach Mauricio Souza hopes John Herdman can lead the Indonesian national team to the 2030 World Cup after he was officially appointed to fill the coach's seat.
The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) officially announced Herdman's name as the new coach of the Garuda squad on Saturday, January 3, 2026. The English tactician has a four-year contract.
Souza said that Herdman has enough time to prepare the Indonesian national team for the highest stage of world football.
"Congratulations and good luck. I focus on being able to enter the World Cup [2030]. That's the important thing. Now it's a deal. Give him time to get to know all the players and we will support Indonesia to the World Cup," he said.
The desire to see Indonesia's performance in the World Cup was also conveyed by Persija's young player, Aditya Warman. He also hopes that one day he will be able to strengthen Indonesia.
Aditya appeared to defend Persija Jakarta in a 2-0 victory against Persijap Jepara on Saturday, January 3. He managed to score one goal to help the Kemayoran Tigers get three points.
"Yes, for sure we as players want to defend the Indonesian national team and congratulations to the new national team coach, John Herdman," said Aditya.
Herdman has not had a team since resigning as coach of Toronto FC in November 2024. He is scheduled to leave for Indonesia next week ahead of an introductory press conference.
Herdman immediately faced a busy agenda with the Indonesian national team in this year's calendar. He will lead the team to appear in the FIFA Series at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium on FIFA Match Day 23-31 March 2026; the FIFA Match Day agenda in June, September, October, and November; as well as the 2026 AFF Cup which is scheduled to take place starting July 25, 2026.
The 50-year-old British tactician is the only coach in the world to have led both the men's and women's national teams of one country to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.
Together with the Canadian women's national team, Herdman appeared at the 2007 and 2011 World Cups. He also made history by winning two consecutive Olympic bronze medals in 2012 and 2016.
In the men's sector, Herdman successfully led Canada to the 2022 Qatar World Cup, which was a historic moment after 36 years. This achievement also catapulted Canada's FIFA ranking at that time from 77th to 33rd in the world.