Dutchman makes sales pitch as FAM revamps national football fortunes
Former Sarawak coach Alberts seen speaking during a sports event held at a hotel in Kuching last Thursday.
KUCHING: Former Sarawak coach Robert Alberts contends that with his vast knowledge of Asian football, he can fit the billing for the national job for the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).
Following the resignation of Dollah Salleh on September, Malaysia is currently without a manager-head coach and the Dutchman who regards himself as ‘Malaysian’, is believed to be highly interested in the ‘hot potato’ job when national soccer is at its lowest ebb.
Alberts believes he has a good grasp as he has been following the development of Malaysian football long enough to understand the mission of the job and challenges that await should he be tasked to become head coach of a revamped national team.
Married to a Malaysian, Alberts also speaks Malay and currently resides with his family in the country where he calls Negeri Sembilan home.
“I hope the national body (FAM) gives me a chance. I can help improve the local standards of football and improve the performances of the national team overall,” he contended in his sales pitch to The Borneo Post during a sports event held at a local hotel here on Thursday (Oct 29).
For credentials, he has experience with the national football set-up as head coach to the Under-19 national team in 2007.
Alberts is renowned for his stints coaching top clubs, especially in the Southeast Asia region and is known to have a cult following among supporters of teams which he used to manage, most notably Kedah and Arema Malang.
His first Asian coaching job was in 1992, when he took over the helm of Malaysian state side Kedah and led them to Malaysia Cup victory and League championship in 1993.
Leaving Kedah in 1994, he would go on to manage Asian sides such as Tanjong Pagar (Singapore), Home United (Singapore), Sarawak (Malaysia), Arema Malang (Indonesia) and PSM Makassar (Indonesia). Coaching the South Korea Under-17 side in 2002 was his first taste as national head coach before becoming National Under-19 coach for Malaysia in 2007.
Alberts also proved to be a ‘miracle worker’ when he joined Sarawak in 2011 and the state was promoted to the Super League. After being relegated at end 2012 season, he led Sarawak unbeaten in the 2013 Premier League to earn promotion to the Super League again.
Also in the A-list of more than a dozen candidates for the Malaysian job are former JDT coach Bojan Hodak, former Kelantan coach George Boateng and former Fulham manager Rene Meulensteen (as reported by foreign media).
After leaving Sarawak this year, when he took the blame for the state’s poor run midway in the Super League, Alberts is currently making up for family time but is still endeared to the state, heading back here nearly every month.
“I still love it here (Sarawak). This place is one of the places I found hard to leave as I have been living here for the past four years,” he said.