JAKARTA (Reuters) – New Indonesia coach Patrick Kluivert wants to lead his team to the 2026 World Cup finals and is looking for a fast start in his first match in charge against Australia.
The former Netherlands striker replaced South Korean Shin Tae-yong, who was dismissed on Monday with Indonesia Football Association (PSSI) chief Erick Thohir calling for better leadership.
“From the first two games I would love to have at least four points,” Kluivert said during his unveiling at a press conference in Jakarta.
Indonesia are third in their qualifying group, well adrift of leaders Japan but only one point behind Australia in the battle for the two automatic berths in the global tournament.
Kluivert’s first qualifying match will be Indonesia’s trip to Australia on March 20, before they face Bahrain in Jakarta five days later.
Kluivert, 48, said he preferred to play attacking football in a 4-3-3 formation but was open to being flexible.
“When you play football the system will change … the most important thing is the players understand what to do in what moment,” he added.
After years in the doldrums, Indonesia have experienced a significant upturn in fortunes due to an influx of mainly Dutch-born members of Indonesia’s diaspora into the national team.
They have given Indonesia hope of a long-awaited return to the World Cup finals following their only appearance in 1938 as the Dutch East Indies when the country was still under Dutch colonial rule.
Kluivert enjoyed a stellar playing career in which he won the Spanish league title with Barcelona in 1999 and scored 40 goals in 79 internationals.
After stints as an assistant coach in the Netherlands and Australia, Kluivert was appointed head coach of Curacao, his mother’s homeland, in 2015 before returning to work in Ajax Amsterdam’s academy less than 18 months later.
He has signed a contract with Indonesia through to 2027 and will be assisted by fellow Dutchmen Alex Pastoor and Denny Landzaat.
(Reporting by Bernadette Christina; Writing by Stefanno Sulaiman and Bernadette Christina, editing by Ed Osmond)
