Coach Patrick Kluivert leaves Indonesia

Coach Patrick Kluivert went back to the Netherlands following his inability to help Indonesia advance beyond the fourth qualifying round for the 2026 World Cup in Asia.

With defeats in both matches of the fourth round of the 2026 World Cup Asian qualifiers, the Indonesian national team officially ended their dream of participating in the world’s biggest football event next summer.

Immediately after the disappointing campaign with Garuda, Coach Patrick Kluivert was confirmed to leave Indonesia and return to his home country, the Netherlands. The 49-year-old coach will take some time off before embarking on his next journey with the Indonesian national team.

This information was shared by the head of the Indonesian national team delegation, Sumardji, at Soekarno-Hatta airport: “No one is staying; everyone has returned to the Netherlands.”

This failure caused Patrick Kluivert’s position to become uncertain, as a wave of calls for his dismissal appeared on social media with the hashtag #KluivertOut.

Sumardji stated that Kluivert’s future will be decided in a meeting of the Indonesian Football Association’s (PSSI) Executive Committee: “Yes, regarding this matter, I believe the final decision will be made at the Exco meeting.”

However, the meeting date has not been set yet. PSSI Vice President Zainuddin Amali said they are still waiting for Chairman Erick Thohir, who is busy organizing his daughter’s wedding on October 18 and 19.

Patrick Kluivert was appointed to lead the Indonesian national team earlier this year, replacing his predecessor Shin Tae Yong. The Dutch coach had a rough start with a 1-5 loss to Australia but quickly regained trust with two important wins against Bahrain and China, securing the team’s place in the fourth round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

During this phase, PSSI invested heavily, adding many naturalized players from Dutch backgrounds to realize the dream of taking the national team to the world’s biggest stage for the first time. However, all efforts collapsed quickly as Indonesia suffered consecutive defeats to Saudi Arabia and Iraq, officially ending their journey in the fourth round.

After the World Cup dream was shattered, criticism of Coach Patrick Kluivert surged among Indonesian fans and media. Many called on PSSI to terminate the Dutch strategist’s contract promptly and expressed a desire to see Shin Tae Yong return to the coaching position.

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