Big Challenges Waiting For Patrick Kluiver

PSSI officially appointed Patrick Kluivert as coach of the Indonesian National Team. (PSSI)

JAKARTA The All-Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) has finally announced Patrick Kluivert as the latest coach. The former AC Milan and Barcelona player was tied to a two-year contract until 2027 with the option of an extension.

Kluivert will also be assisted by a number of assistant coaches from the Netherlands, namely Alex Pastoor and Denny Landzaat. In addition, PSSI also emphasized that there will be two Indonesian local coaches who will become assistant coaches.

However, the appointment of Patrick Kluivert as Shin Tae-yong's replacement (STY) invited pros and cons. Not a few fans of the Indonesian National Team were disappointed with the change of coach approaching the crucial third round match of the Asian zone 2026 World Cup Qualifiers.

But on the other hand, STY's performance over the past five years has also been questioned. Football observers criticized STY's coaching style for often "trialing" tactics during important matches.

PSSI chairman Erick Thohir announced the dismissal of Shin Tae-yong at a press conference held at Danareksa Tower, Jakarta, Monday (6/1/2025). On that occasion, PSSI ended its collaboration with the South Korean coach for the good of the Indonesian national team.

"Of course we thank the performance of coach Shin Tae-yong so far and my relationship is very good," said Erick.

He did not explain in detail the reason why PSSI cut off cooperation with STY. However, Erick Thohir emphasized that this dismissal was not carried out suddenly. This decision, according to PSSI, had been considered since October 2024 when Indonesia visited China in the continuation of the third round of the 2026 World Cup Qualification in the Asian zone.

It didn't take long for PSSI to then appoint STY's successor. The choice fell on Patrick Kluivert, a man from the Netherlands who had a brilliant career as a player.

Kluivert started his playing career with Ajax Amsterdam, where he won various major titles ranging from the Eredivisie, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, to the Intercontinental Cup. He then wore the AC Milan, Barcelona, Newcastle United, Valencia, PSV Eindhoven, and finally Lille before hanging up his boots in 2008.

Even though he was classy when he was still actively playing, Kluivert's career as a coach was arguably mediocre. He started his coaching career as assistant to Louis van Gaal at the Dutch national team at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

In 2015, he led the Curacao National Team to the 2018 World Cup qualifiers and the 2017 Caribbean Cup qualifiers. Other experiences include serving as sporting director at Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona's academy, coaching the Ajax U-19 team, and becoming an assistant tomanfaat Seedorf in Cameroon's national team.

Before agreeing to lead Indonesia, Patrick Kluivert coached Turkish club Adana Demirspor. He has also served as director of Barcelona's academy.

Shortly after being announced as Indonesia's coach to replace STY, Kluivert admitted that he was very enthusiastic about his new job.

"The feeling is certainly extraordinary and certainly very inspiring. Everyone knows that Indonesia has a very passionate football culture and an extraordinary passion for this game," Kluiver said on social media account Fabrizio Romano.

Being a part of this country with a very big aspiration is a great honor and responsibility for me, continued the man who was born July 1, 1976.

Patrick Kluivert is faced with a tough challenge with the Garuda Team. Jay Idzes and colleagues will face a crucial round three match of the Asian zone 2026 World Cup Qualifiers.

The Garuda squad has played six matches and is ranked third with six points in Group C. There are still four matches left that will determine the passing of the national team to this biggest football event.

Indonesia will travel to Australia headquarters on March 20, 2025, then face Bahrain and China in Jakarta, and lastly face Japan on June 10.

This can be said to be a short-term target for Kluivers, as well as a moment to prove to the doubters about their ability to lead the national team.

"Of course I'm very excited to contribute to the progress and success of this team and I look forward to working with everyone for our purposes," Kluiver said.

Our mission is of course qualifying for next year's World Cup. I think we have the ability and power and passion to achieve it," Kluiver said again.

But Patrick Kluiver's challenge is of course not just how to win the game on the pitch. He still has to win the hearts of the national team supporters who are still looking down on his presence.

And for sure, Patrick Kluiver must first build chemistry with the players. The existence of friction in the dressing room between a number of players and STY is said to be one of the reasons for the team's disharmony.

Erick Thohir himself revealed that there were at least two causes of STY's dismissal from the national team coach position. First communication, second tactics.

STY can only speak South Korean even though it has been five years in charge of the Indonesian national team. Without English, which is an international language, even though the national team players are filled with the majority of the diaspora players who play abroad make the communication of players and coaches a little hampered.

Although it is said that the change of coach in the 2.5 months before against Australia was a gamble, football observer Anton Sanjoyo supports PSSI in choosing a Dutch-language coach.

"Because 80-90 percent of Indonesian players now in the senior team are the Dutch diaspora," said Anton.

With a Dutch-language coach and using English as his second language, Anton believes there are no difficulties in transferring of knowledge. He also believes that new Dutch-speaking coaches can also open early communication in order to build a conducive team.

As for the matter of tactics, Erick assessed that there were dynamics that were quite complex and had appeared before the match against China in mid-October last year. Indonesia, which is predicted to be able to bring home three points, surrendered 1-2 in China's midfield.

STY at that time replaced three players at the beginning of the second half, namely Mees Hilgers, Shyane Pattynama, and Witan Sulaeman. He claimed the replacement was made because there were injured players and also fitness problems.

Another football observer, Kesit Handoyo, criticized STY for often dismantling the pairs of players so as to harm the team. Kesit assessed that there needs to be a definite team framework so that the players can build chemistry and confidence properly.

"If the result is positive, yes, but there are more negatives than positive when the reshuffle is carried out from one match to another. This is what I think is Shin Tae-yong's bad habit," said Kesit.

But despite all the challenges faced, Patrick Kluiver admitted that he needed the support of the entire Indonesian nation behind him and the national team.

"And I think, together we can achieve a lot of big things," he concluded.