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Former Indonesian national team soccer coach Alfred Riedl dies at 70
Riedl played a big role in Indonesian soccer and led the red-and-white team in important matches.
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Austrian soccer coach Alfred Riedl. (Kompas.com/Garry Andrew Lotulung)
Austrian soccer coach Alfred Riedl, who trained the Indonesian national soccer team between 2010 and 2016, died on Tuesday.
He was 70 years old, kompas.com reported quoting Austrian sports news outlet Sport24.
Riedl played a big role in Indonesian soccer and led the red-and-white team in important matches, including pushing it to the final round of the 2010 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Cup.
Riedl won the hearts of Indonesian fans even though the team lost 4-2 on aggregate to rival Malaysia.
Riedl left Indonesia in 2011 to embark on a new journey as a technical director for the Laos national soccer team before joining Belgian club Visé as head of youth development.
In late 2013, Riedl was reappointed as head coach for Indonesia, but his contract ended in 2014 after the team failed to qualify for the knockout stages in the 2014 AFF Cup.
Riedl returned to Indonesia for the third time in 2016 and led the national team to the 2016 AFF Cup finals. The team, however, suffered another blow after losing to Thailand on a 3-2 aggregate.
Riedl was set to lead Persebaya Surabaya in the 2020 season of Indonesia’s top-tier league, Shopee Liga 1, but due to health issues, the Austrian canceled the plan.
Riedl was born in Vienna on Nov. 22, 1949. He started his soccer career as a striker at FK Austria Wien.
When he was 22 years old, he was transferred to Belgia Sint-Truiden Club in Belgium.
He also played in France before starting his coaching career for international clubs in Morocco, Egypt and Kuwait, among other countries, as well as national teams, including Laos, Vietnam and Palestine. (gis)
