Football Tribe Indonesia
PSM Makassar fans were given a New Year’s Eve gift as their CEO Munafri announced the identity of the club’s new coach.
Gathering the media, Munafri held a quick press conference to end the mystery of who would manage PSM after Darije Kalezic stepped down. Before revealing the name, new coach Munafri said two things to the assembled press.
First of all, he asked that they don’t believe the rumors ahead. Munafri said that there are many unreliable comments flying around on social media, and he wants journalists to convince the fans that rumours are just rumours.
Next, he talked about the terms and conditions for all coaches applied to lead PSM in 2020. First of all, he must know South East Asian football culture, and he must have coached in Malaysia or Thailand. Secondly, the club looked for someone who has previously led a team to a championship.
After mentioning these two things, Munafri said that another Balkan coach will manage PSM. After Kalezic, now please welcome Bojan Hodak, Maczman! The ex- Johor Darul Ta’zim and Kelantan FA coach has most recently managed the Malaysian U-19 team for three years.
Hodak himself not only took Kelantan and JDT to become league and local champions, but he also helped Harimau Malaya Muda become the champions in AFF U-19 Youth Champions in 2018. In the semi-final, Hodak’s boys won against Indonesia in a penalty shoot-out after playing out a 1-1 draw in normal and extra time.
Hodak also won the Cambodian league with Phnom Penh Crown back in 2011 and won the Chinese FA Cup with Shandong Luneng in the same year. In his debut season in Malaysia, he won the Malaysia Super League, Malaysia FA Cup and Malaysia Cup in 2012.
Munafri said the coach will arrive in Makassar on the 5th of January, with the aim to complete the 2019 Liga 1 season and prepare for a new campaign in 2020. They also have an upcoming AFC Cup qualifying match against Lalenok United, the champion of Timor-Leste. If they win the two-legged qualifying match, Juku Eja will go to the group stage like they did last season.