Patrick Kluivert: Indonesia name Dutch legend as head coach
2025-01-08
Category: sports

Indonesia have named former Netherlands and Barcelona striker Patrick Kluivert as their head coach.The 48-year-old replaces South Korean coach Shin Tae-yong, and will look to qualify his new side for the expanded 48-team World Cup in 2026. Kluivert, who won the Champions League with Ajax and played in the Premier League for Newcastle, has signed a two-year contract with the option for an extension.The southeast Asian nation have only previously qualified for the tournament once, playing in the 1938 edition while they were still the Dutch East Indies.The Dutchman's first assignment will be a third qualifying round tie with Australia in March, with two countries from their six-team group reaching the World Cup automatically and a further two heading into a further round.Indonesia, who are 127th in the Fifa rankings, sit third in their group after six of 10 games.Kluivert last managed a team in 2023, when he took charge of Turkish side Adana Demirspor for a five-month spell.He has previously had two spells in charge of Curacao and assisted Louis van Gaal and Clarence Seedorf when they led the Netherlands and Cameroon national sides respectively.