Arema Malang may appear secure atop the Indonesian Super League, having lost just once in 12 matches and boasting the league’s best defense with a paltry three goals allowed.
Dig beneath the surface, though, and it is clear there is something rotten in the state of East Java.
Head coach Robert Rene Alberts and several star players threatened to quit the club on Wednesday, accusing Arema management of breaking promises it made to its staff.
“[Management] had promised to give us a win bonus, as stated in our contracts, but they have yet to give that until now. We don’t want to beg for that because we’re not beggars,” Alberts said during a news conference.
The Dutchman, who moved to Arema from Malaysia’s Serawak FA, poured out his heart and aired all of the club’s problems after a 3-0 defeat of Sriwijaya FC at Kanjuruhan Stadium on Wednesday.
He also said he was nearly evicted from the hotel where he was staying because club management had yet to pay his bills.
“We’ve been trying to be professionals,” Alberts said. “We won our games and are at the top right now despite those internal problems. Now we ask the management to also be professional.”
Alberts said he and five foreign players — Noh Alam Shah, Roman Chmelo, Pierre Njanka, Muhammad Ridhuan and Landry Poulangoye — had yet to receive a 25 percent down payment on their contracts, as was promised when they signed with the club.
Alam Shah, Ridhuan, Njanka and Alberts said they would not return to Arema after the holiday break if management did not settle its debts. Chmelo and Poulangoye refused to comment on the matter.
“We’re No. 1 right now and all the fans think that we’re in a great condition. But we’re really hurt inside because of the management,” Alam Shah told the Web site of Aremania, Arema’s supporters’ club. “If they don’t resolve this problem until after the holidays, perhaps I won’t be coming back here.”
Goalkeeper Markus Haris Maulana, who spoke on behalf of the local players, said management promised to give bonuses after wins over Bontang FC and Persisam Samarinda but had yet to deliver.
Arema director Gunadi Handoko acknowledged the club had encountered financial problems but rejected Alberts’ accusations. He said there were late salary payments in October, but they were paid in early November.
Gunadi said he regretted that Alberts and the players had taken their grievances public.
“If they have a problem, then it’d be better if they speak to us first so we can sit down and talk,” he said.
Gunadi said the club’s cash flow was in the red but that management was trying to overcome the problem without making the team suffer.
He said last season’s club sponsor, tobacco company Bentoel, still owed Rp 3 billion ($318,000) and planned to pay its debt in installments through March.
The club says it earns Rp 600 million to Rp 700 million per match in gate receipts.
The director said management would talk with the squad after the holiday to settle the problem, adding that he was confident the club could resolve the problems before a walkout threatened the club’s Super League prospects.
Hundreds of Aremania members held a rally outside the club’s offices on Thursday, demanding management solve the problems so none of the squad walks away.
Arema is idle until it plays local rival Persema in the Malang derby on Jan. 10. - JG.
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