Jakarta – The controversy surrounding PSSI’s decision to dismiss Shin Tae-yong as the head coach of the Indonesian National Team is not over, yet rumors about his replacement are already circulating, with Patrick Kluivert mentioned as the candidate. The former Dutch player’s Instagram account has quickly been flooded by Indonesian netizens.
Fabrizio Romano, known for providing accurate and up-to-date football news, reported that Kluivert is set to become the head coach of the Garuda Squad. The journalist even included his signature phrase, “Here we go.”
As a result, Indonesian netizens quickly searched for the latest updates about Kluivert, including on Instagram. According to detikINET, Kluivert’s last post was on November 30, 2024, when he attended Barcelona’s 125th-anniversary celebration.
In this post, Indonesian netizens flooded the comment section, questioning Kluivert’s qualifications as a coach.
“Does he have a good CV for coaching a national team?” wrote @andi.j97
“If he’s an assistant coach, fine, but as a head coach, I don’t think so 😂,” remarked @russel_2350
“No more excuses about ‘process.’ We demand wins!” stated @t_n_iman
“Bad CV 😂 better STY,” commented @mrr_rrr4
Indonesians are passionate football fans, and some netizens warned Kluivert about the challenges.
“Are you ready for the pressure from 277.5 million Indonesians?” asked @yuliyantii84
“Testing the waters for Coach Patrick 🙌,” added @tbgshqq
So far, after the announcement of Shin Tae-yong’s departure, PSSI has not officially confirmed Kluivert as the new head coach of the Indonesian National Team.
Meanwhile, Indonesia is competing in the Third Round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers in Asia, Group C, currently in third place behind Japan with 16 points and Australia with seven points. Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and China all have six points.
The teams finishing first and second will earn direct tickets to the 2026 World Cup, while those in third and fourth place will still have a chance in the fourth round.
