Persib Bandung head coach Djadjang Nurdjaman is lifted into the air as his side celebrates its victory over Persipura Jayapura, securing the ISL title. (Antara Photo/Rosa Panggabean)With Persib Bandung ending its 19-year title drought by defeating Persipura Jayapura 7-5 in the penalty shootout at Palembang to win the Indonesian Super League title, one man now stands in the spotlight: head coach Djadjang Nurdjaman.
Djadjang has been with Persib on and off for years, filling many roles and becoming one of the few to have lifted the trophy as both player and coach in the same club.
Joining the Bandung side in 1986, Djadjang was part of the great Persib team who won the national amateur competition in 1986, 1990 and 1994.
He returned to the club in 2006 after he was appointed to lead the under-21 team. A year later, he was promoted to the senior side as an assistant coach.
Djadjang left for Pelita Jaya in 2008 before making his comeback in 2012 when the club signed him as head coach.
With a number of changes from the previous season and several new additions, the 50-year-old coach managed to turn the side into a solid team.
After winning the ISL title, Djadjang shared his view on the recent football season and what he has in store for the team with the Jakarta Globe.
Q: Persib finally ended the title drought with you at the helm. It’s full circle for you as you won the amateur title with the club as a player and now you helped it win the championship as head coach. How do you feel?
A: It is amazing, very amazing. This [the victory] is what we’ve been looking for. We’ve been working very hard to win the competition and this year we were able to make it happen. I am very proud and very satisfied with all the effort that we gave [during the tournament]. The ISL applied two conference formats this season and Persib Bandung won the championship.
How do you view the overall competition?
It was a hard season for all teams, including Persib. We had to play a lot of good teams and the tension was getting higher in the playoffs. I think this season’s ISL is very competitive and fun to watch.
This year’s victory is the first title for Persib in 19 years. What are your plans for the team in the future?
Let us enjoy our victory in the next few weeks. After that, of course we will start to plan for the next season. We will play in two competitions next year as we have qualified for the AFC Cup: we have to prepare our squad well.
What is your target for next season?
To defend the Indonesia Super League title and then we want to advance as far as we can in the AFC Cup. At least, we would like to repeat what Persipura accomplished in the AFC Cup this season by qualifying to the semifinals.
With such high ambitions, what kind of changes can we expect from your team?
This is the winning team and I will not change it too much. I will keep 90 percent of the team for next season while adding three to four new players to add more depth to this squad.
It is well known that for the ISL most clubs sign their footballers with a one-year contract. How do you plan to maintain your players?
Yes, I know. Besides Konate Makan, other Persib players only have one-year contracts. As I said before, after we enjoy our victory, [Persib] management will start to negotiate new contracts for the players.
Some players, like Djibril Coulibaly, have not performed very well this season. How would you review his performance?
Yes, we know that Coulibaly didn’t perform as well as we hoped. The management will talk to him soon and most likely we will try to find a new forward to replace him in the next season.
Persib is currently home to many talented footballers. Which of these players are, in your professional opinion, irreplaceable?
Every player in Persib is important but if I have to choose, I think Konate Makan and Supardi Nasir played consistently throughout the entire of season.
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