Essien Turns Down Offer from Australian Club to Join Persib

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Former Chelsea and Ghana midfielder, Michael Essien, revealed that he was offered a position in an Australian club before he decided to join Persib Bandung.

“No Indonesian club [has offered me a spot], but there were a number of offers from Australia. But I don’t want to go there. Then Persib came to me with an attractive offer. So I decided to go to Persib,” Essien said during Persib’s 84th anniversary at Graha Persib on Tuesday, March 14, 2017.

Essien revealed that he knew about Persib from PT Persib Bandung Bermartabat (PT PBB) official who met him and immediately explained about Indonesia’s football scene.

Read: Former Chelsea Player Michael Essien Joins Local Side Persib

“Tedy (fPT PBB official) had explained it to me. I also often visit Indonesia before I joined Chelsea. When they (PT PBB) came up to me, it was an honor for me, and it was easy for me to make the decision to accept the offer in becoming a part of the club,” he said.

Essien admitted that he is blown away by the reception from both Persib players and fans. Therefore, he hopes that he can help the team win trophies and promote Indonesian football.

“I waited so much for this day. Everyone here is really nice and accepted me. I hope that I could help develop Indonesia's football scene and win many trophies for Persib,” he said.

Meanwhile, Tedy Cahyono, a PT PBB official, revealed that he hopes that Essien’s presence could spice up the competition in Indonesia and attract other top international players to play in Indonesia.

ANTARA