The All-Indonesia Football Association (PSSI) urged Indonesian women national team players to have a career overseas in order to develop their skills and increase their experience.
“We hope as much as possible to play outside of Indonesia, especially in Europe,” PSSI’s Secretary General, Yunus Nusi, noted here on Wednesday.
Players that compete overseas are deemed to have a positive impact on the Indonesian national team.
To this end, the PSSI felt a sense of gratitude when a woman national team player, Shalika Aurelia Viandrisa, joined the Roma Calcio Femminile in the Italian Lega Serie B for women.
The 18-year-old footballer became the first Indonesian woman player to have landed a contract with one of the European clubs.
Roma Calcio Femminile affirmed that Viandrisa is a player, who relied on her physique and possessed a high leadership spirit.
Viandrisa is also viewed as being a professional, serious, and “hard-headed” player, as she would leave no stone unturned to win.
“Shalika’s achievement will become the stepping stone for our women national team players to play overseas,” Nusi affirmed.
PSSI communicates with the football federations in several European countries, such as Spain, France, and the Netherlands, so that more players could compete in Europe, he noted.
“We expect those federations to provide their support if PSSI sent their players, especially the ones playing in the national team, to play in European clubs,” he remarked.
“PSSI’s chief requested Indonesian clubs to voluntarily release their players if they receive a request to play in clubs outside of Indonesia, especially Europe,” he emphasized.
Moreover, PSSI urged the women’s national team to not harbor any fear of competing in the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup’s Group B that is deemed to have strong teams, such as Australia and Thailand.
Source: Antara News