Recommends Angelo Alessio As Persija Coach, Bepe: We Are Optimistic He's The Fittest Choice

Angelo Alessio (left) as assistant coach to Antonio Conte at Chelsea (Instagram @angeloalessioofficial)

JAKARTA - President of Persija, Mohamad Prapanca, said that it was the club legend, Bambang 'Bepe' Pamungkas who recommended Angelo Alessio to become the coach of the Kemayoran Tigers first team.

In an online press conference last Thursday, Prapanca said that when Bambang brought the name Alessio to himself, he had the same feeling when he chose Sudirman as the Kemayoran Tiger tactician in the 2021 Menpora Cup pre-season tournament.

At that time, Sudirman's appointment caused dynamics but in the end, he was able to bring Persija to become the champion.

"That's the feeling I got when I chose Alessio," said Prapanca.

Prapanca also presented the announcement of Persija's new coach as a birthday present for Bambang Pamungkas which fell on June 10.

"This is a birthday gift for Mr. Bepe," he said.

Meanwhile, Bambang Pamungkas said that there were actually five candidates, including Alessio, who would become Persija's coach candidate.

One of them, Bepe continued, is a big figure who has coached Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur. However, he refused to give the names.

"Me and the club president conducted interviews with the five of them to see the psychological aspects and others. From there, it narrowed to three, then two names, and finally one. We are optimistic that Alessio is the fittest choice," said the 41-year-old man.

On the same occasion, Mohamad Prapanca also explained the position of Bambang Pamungkas in Persija's management.

It was announced that he would no longer be Persija's manager since January 2021, it was said that Bepe would return to that position.

"The inauguration of Bepe's position as manager is waiting for the signature of the president director of Persija," said Prapanca.

Persija Jakarta officially announced the appointment of Italian tactician Angelo Alessio as the first team coach for the 2021-2022 season on June 10, 2021.

Benvenuto, Mister Angelo Alessio 🇮🇹#BelieveIn12 #PersijaJakarta pic.twitter.com/eRDyrSblV5

— Persija Jakarta (@Persija_Jkt) June 10, 2021

Angelo Alessio is contracted by Persija for one season with the option of an extension until 2023.

Angelo Alessio's name is quite well known in Europe. He started his coaching career in 1998. However, his name has become popular since becoming the assistant coach of renowned Italian tactician Antonio Conte in 2010.

Alessio was an assistant coach when Conte was head coach at Siena (2010-2011 season), Juventus (2011-2012 to 2013-2014), the Italian national team (2014-2016), and Chelsea (2016-2017 to 2017-2018).

During that time, Alessio helped Conte to bring Juventus three-time Italian League champions, Chelsea one-time Premier League champions, and one FA Cup winner.

Prior to working at Persija, Alessio was the coach of Scottish League club Kilmarnock FC in June-December 2019.

Coaching Persija is Alessio's first experience as a coach in Asia.