John Herdman Has Contacted Indonesian National Team Players Before Officially Taking Charge (57 characters)

John Herdman was officially appointed as Indonesian National Team Coach on Saturday, January 10, 2026, and introduced to the public on Tuesday, January 13, 2026. Three weeks prior, Herdman had established communication with the Garuda team's core group, including team captain Jay Idzes and several other players.

This initial approach took place since the Christmas period, not to discuss performance targets or major ambitions, but rather an effort to introduce himself and build personal closeness with the players. The goal is to build the foundation for the Indonesian National Team's long-term project.

"During Christmas, I wished many of them and their families Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. But I've already spoken with the core group of players. I've had conversations, long conversations, with the captain and some senior players," he said at Hotel Mulia, Jakarta, on Tuesday, after his official introductory press conference.

For the 50-year-old coach, human relationships are the starting point before discussing technical matters.

This step stands in contrast to the situation of the Indonesian national team, which had just gone through an emotional phase after being eliminated from the 2026 World Cup last October in Saudi Arabia. 

Indonesia began qualification in October 2023 from the first round against Brunei Darussalam under Shin Tae-yong, progressed to the second and third rounds, before finally stopping in the fourth round under the guidance of Patrick Kluivert after losing out to Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

It is in this context that Herdman chose to come as a listener first.

The next stage is structured virtual communication over the next two weeks to understand how the players view the past two-year journey, from technical, mental, to personal motivation aspects.

"In the next two weeks, I will have video conferences with the team's core leaders to understand the World Cup Qualification campaign, hear their perspectives, understand their motivations, why they play for Indonesia, and what they want from this journey. Those conversations will happen in the next two weeks," stated Herdman, the coach who brought Canada back to the World Cup after a 36-year absence.

After the listening and dialogue phase, Herdman will continue his work with direct observation in Europe. He wants to see the training environment, club dynamics, and the performance of Indonesian Players playing in European competitions.

Jay Idzes (Sassuolo) and Emil Audero (Cremonese) in Italy, Kevin Diks (Borussia Moenchengladbach) in Germany, Calvin Verdonk (Lille) in France, Ole Romeny (Oxford United) in England, Ragnar Oratmangoen (Dender) and Joey Pelupessy (Lommel) in Belgium, as well as Justin Hubner (Fortuna Sittard) and Dean James (Go Ahead Eagles) in the Netherlands are on the list of players to be monitored directly.

"From late January to early February, I will go to Europe to see their training environment, listen to them directly, and look for other players who might be ready to join. This will be a very busy period, and at this stage, listening to the players and understanding their perspective is the most important thing," he concluded.