August 13 – A controversial plan by the Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) to recruit players from overseas to play for the national team has been backed by the Government.
Under the proposal, the PSSI hope to recruit several Dutch players with Indonesian roots, to play for them.
The idea of the naturalisation of foreign footballers was suggested earlier this year by PSSI chairman Nurdin Halid.
He argued that having naturalised players in the national team would be a good way to boost Indonesia’s performance.
Nurdin - who has been criticised for the national team’s poor performance since he took the helm in 2003 – said the PSSI already had earmarked five Australians and a dozen Dutch players who might be interested in playing for Indonesia, currently ranked 138th in the world.
Indonesia, with a population of 230 million, is the fourth most populous country in the world but has only qualified for the World Cup once, in 1938, when, as the Dutch East Indies, they lost 6-0 to Hungary.
Nurdin had earlier had to drop plans to bid for the 2022 World Cup – which he hoped would encourage a raise in standards – because of lack of Government support.
But Youth and Sports Minister Andi Malarangeng said he fully supported the new scheme.
“The Government will support the idea and welcome anyone who wants to be naturalized,” said Malarangeng.
Indonesia’s 2006 Law on Citizenship enables Hurdin’s scheme and Malarangeng said he was expecting a list of players who wanted natrualisation in the next few weeks.
Nurdin said the naturalisation plan is aimed at the team being successful at the 2011 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, which is due to be held in Indonesia, in Palembang.
He is aiming to recruit professional players under-23.
“We are focusing on how to bring home a gold medal from the 2011 SEA Games,” said Nurdin.
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