PSS Sleman have acted quickly in preparing for the 2023/24 Liga 1 Indonesia season, as they offloaded several players and brought in midfielders Jonathan Bustos and Esteban Vizcarra from Borneo FC Samarinda and Madura United respectively.
Following their disappointing 16th place finish in the 2022/23 campaign, PSS are currently busy in the transfer market as they seek to rebuild their squad from the ground-up to make up for last season’s awful results.
Eleven players has left the Maguwoharjo Stadium as the Super Elja performed a massive overhaul of their playing squad, which included long-time servants of the club in Bagus Nirwanto, Wahyu Sukarta, and Ega Rizky, as well as others such as Jonathan Cantillana, Dedy Gusmawan, and Marckho Merauje.
Even last season’s head coach Seto Nurdiantoro was not spared from the post-season cull, as he was removed and re-designated into a new position, with PSS currently negotiating terms with former FLC Thanh Hoa boss Marian Mihail to succeed Seto.
But with player departures comes player arrivals, with PSS announcing their first signings for the new season on Tuesday.
Strengthening PSS’ midfield for the new season were Argentines Bustos and Vizcarra, with the latter having being naturalized into an Indonesian citizen.
Attacking midfielder Bustos was a mainstay in the Borneo starting lineup from 2020 to 2023, racking up 10 goals and 14 assists from 58 league appearances for the Pesut Etam, and at 28 years of age, he’s still in the prime of his career.
Vizcarra, on the other hand, may be in the wrong side of his 30s at 37-years old, but his experience in Indonesian football is second to none. The midfielder had represented the likes of Pelita Jaya, Semen Padang FC, Arema FC, Sriwijaya FC, Persib Bandung and Madura United in a career that spans 14 years, and even in his last season with the Laskar Sapeh Kerrab he still proved to be a reliable figure with 28 league appearances under his belt.
“Hopefully the arrival of Bustos and Esteban will be a new start for a better PSS era,” said PSS general commissioner Rachmat Makassau, as quoted from the club website, “I invite PSS fans to continue to wait and be patient for the changes that we will continue to make in the future.”