Jakarta –
The Indonesian national team coach, John Herdman, respects Dean James’ decision not to join against Saint Kitts & Nevis. He did not call a player to replace James.
Dean James was initially included in the list of 24 Indonesian players to face the Garuda Squad against Saint Kitts & Nevis at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium, Jakarta, Friday (27/3/2026) evening WIB. However, he was later dropped from the squad.
At the time of his removal, James was having problems in the Netherlands regarding his passport. James is still listed as a Dutch player in the Go Ahead Eagels squad.
SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT
This was questioned by NAC Breda after losing to Go Ahead Eagles 0-6 with James appearing in the match. They considered James to be invalid for defending Go Ahead Eagels because he should have the status of a non-European Union player after being naturalized by Indonesia.
This situation has given rise to a lot of speculation regarding the reasons for James’ removal. Dutch media, De Sentor, revealed that he could not compete in Indonesia because he was sick.
The Indonesian national team coach, John Herdman, respects James’ decision not to join the Garuda Team. He also keeps the door wide open for James in the next national team matches.
Herdman emphasized that he is fully focused on the squad he currently has. He will not look for a replacement for James who will not join.
“I think Dean has made his statement. So I think it’s always important to listen to players. My focus this week is on this group of players. Dean is a fantastic player, a big part of our family, a big part of our squad and will remain so in the future. For this training camp he has made his statement, he has his reasons,” said Herdman in a press conference ahead of Saint Kitts & Nevis.
“For me, the focus since Monday, since Sunday, since the last 3 weeks since I was in January, has been about running these four days at the level and standard that these players deserve. We have a group here that has really adopted a new mindset and hopefully they will show that in the game.”
“Regarding the substitutes, I’m quite comfortable with the group we have. We have a good squad here now. Everyone has arrived, everyone is healthy,” he explained.
(pur/krs)
