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Jakarta Journo: The Perils and Promise Of  Our Garuda Boys

Los Angeles Galaxy player David Beckham (R) takles Andik Vermansyah of an Indonesia selection team during the exhibition football match in Jakarta on Wednesday that Galaxy won 1-0. Beckham said he 'felt bad for kicking (Andik). He's a very talented player but I wanted his shirt.' (AFP Photo/Adek Berry)

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With the Indonesian Football Association, or PSSI, consumed politics, the only good news about football these days comes from the young Garuda Boys.

Indonesia did not win the gold medal during the recent SEA games, but U-23 players such as Titus Bonai, Patrich Wanggai and Andik Vermansyah showed that there’s reason to be hopeful about our football future.

Based on their performance during the competition, players like Titus and Patrich are poised to replace their seniors, the likes of Cristian Gonzales and Bambang Pamungkas.

Moreover, we’re also learning that these young footballers are honing their skills abroad.

There’s Arthur Irawan, who is learning a trick or two on Espanyol’s youth team. OK, it’s not Barcelona or Real Madrid, but Espanyol is still part of La Liga, one of the world’s best leagues.

If things go right for Arthur, meaning that he moves to the senior team, perhaps he will one day know what it is like to play against football greats like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. If so, the 18-year-old could return home to Tanah Air as a valuable addition to the national team.

Then there are those players recruited by CS Vise, a second-division Belgian club. They are Yandi Munawar, Alfin Tuasalamony, Yericho Christiantoko and soon Syamsir Alam.

Granted, the club is owned by the Bakrie family so that may raise questions about how real the offers are, but if this exposes young players to European competition, it can only mean good things for the Merah Putih.

We are also still hoping that rumors of interest from European clubs in the speedy Andik Vermansyah will prove real. Andik himself received special mention from LA Galaxy coach Bruce Arena during the team’s exhibition match here late last month.

But those catapulted to prominence must also be wary of publicity overdose. Case in point: the overexposed Irfan Bachdim.

When Bachdim first surfaced during the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup, his popularity skyrocketed as he became a budding hero.

But it didn’t take long before his status as a footballer waned as he took the celebrity road. Soon, he was building a reputation with good looks on camera not making good goals.

Now he’s better known for beautiful hair than playing the beautiful game.

It came to a head when he was booted off the U-23 team for the SEA Games for allegedly putting a commercial shoot ahead of practice.

This should serve as an object lesson for someone like Diego Michiels.

He is arguably one of the best left-backs in the country. But recently, he has been highlighted for all the wrong reasons. He’s been spotted hanging out with celebri-babes Nikita Willy, Dewi Persik and Rahma Azhari, to name just three.

There’s nothing wrong with a professional footballer infiltrating the world of glitz. But first he needs to make sure that the nightlife does not take a toll on his field performance.

But all of that aside, the most important thing right now is that the PSSI needs to make sure that it doesn’t do anything stupid to hamper the growth of these promising young players.

The national footballing body, which is more like a political party these days, has already stated that players not competing in the PSSI-recognized IPL and instead opting for the competing ISL league will not be eligible to fight for the red-and-white.

The immediate repercussion is that players such as Titus, Patrich, Oktovianus Maniani and Diego will be excluded from national team consideration.

This makes no sense.

Why is it that the body that handles all things football in the country would want to implement a policy that would reduce the national team’s chance of reaching its maximum potential?

Armando Siahaan is a reporter at the Jakarta Globe. Follow him on Twitter @jakartajourno or e-mail him at armando.siahaan@thejakartaglobe.com.

Also a weekly column in the Jakarta Globe, Jakarta Journo takes an irreverent look at the main issues dominating the headlines in Indonesia.