Indonesian Football Association Denies Contact with Frank de Boer, Addresses Van Gaal Rumors
Jakarta, Indonesia – The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) has firmly denied reports linking former netherlands national team coach Frank de Boer to the position of head coach for the Indonesian national team. The clarification came during a press conference where PSSI Chairman Erick Thohir also addressed widespread, unsubstantiated rumors surrounding Louis van Gaal’s potential involvement with Indonesian football.
The speculation originated online, fueled by social media posts and misinterpretations of recent announcements. Thohir explained that the rumors, including claims of Van Gaal being slated to coach the national team, stemmed from a misunderstanding of a charitable initiative Van Gaal announced in the Netherlands. “I just laughed when he announced it on Monday, but people announced somthing else,” Thohir stated, emphasizing the need to correct the flow of misinformation.
Thohir confirmed that PSSI had not initiated contact with de Boer, nor had he considered him as a candidate. “Frank de Boer certainly hasn’t, because I haven’t been in contact with him, I haven’t thought about it either,” he added. The PSSI is currently in the process of identifying a new coach, carefully evaluating both current and past national team coaches, Shin Tae Yong and Patrick Kluivert, to determine strengths and areas for improvement in a future appointment.
The decision on the new coach will be a collaborative effort, involving the PSSI’s technical director, Alexander Zwiers, and the BTN (a yet-to-be-defined body) which will filter candidates before presenting them to the PSSI Exco for final approval.Thohir stressed that the Exco will not be directly involved in the initial filtering process, leaving that duty to the BTN and Dirtek. A meeting with Zwiers is scheduled for Friday to further discuss the search.
