Persija Finalize Retained Foreign Players List, Final Decision Post-Eid

Persija Jakarta has begun structuring their squad framework for next season, including determining the fate of foreign players who served as the team's backbone throughout the competition. The club's sports director, Bambang Pamungkas, revealed management already has a list of foreign players to retain. 

This evaluation was based on their performance and consistency during the current season.

"Those names are already in our pocket. Including which foreign players will get contract extensions and which won't. We've discussed what the options look like," stated Bambang during the Ngopi Bareng Persija event at Persija's office in South Jakarta on Tuesday.

However, the former Persija captain declined to disclose the identities of players included in the Contract Extension plans. 

According to him, the final decision will only be confirmed after the Eid holiday.

"We'll try to finalize it after Eid," he said.

Throughout this season, Persija made several adjustments to their Foreign Player composition. 

During the second half of the competition, the capital city club released Gustavo Franca to Arema FC and Alan Cardoso to Bhayangkara FC. 

Besides Cardoso, Bhayangkara FC also acquired Ryo Matsumura on loan.

As replacements, Persija brought in center-back Paulo Ricardo and striker Alaaeddine Ajaraie. 

Their arrival complements the list of foreign players already in the squad: Carlos Eduardo, Thales Lira, Jean Mota, Van Basty Sousa, Fabio Calonego, Maxwell Souza, Allano Lima, Bruno Tubarao, and Gustavo Almeida.

Among these players, Maxwell emerged as the most consistent figure. The 31-year-old striker appeared in nearly all Persija matches this season with 23 total appearances. He was absent only once when his team won 2-0 against Persijap Jepara in early January.

His contribution extends beyond playing minutes. Maxwell also leads Persija's scoring chart with 13 goals, making him one of the league's most prolific strikers. 

This record is surpassed only by Arema's Dalberto with 14 goals and Malut United's David da Silva who has collected 15 goals.

After Maxwell, goals from other Persija Foreign Players came from Allano with six goals and Gustavo with five goals.

"So perhaps you all can already guess roughly who deserves an extension and who doesn't," Bambang remarked.

Currently, Persija remains in the upper tier of the Standings. The Macan Kemayoran occupy third place with 51 points from 24 matches, trailing Borneo FC by three points and league leaders Persib Bandung by six points.

Before the competition enters its break, Persija still has one crucial match against Dewa United FC at Jakarta International Stadium this weekend. (Antara)