Bottom of the first division
Former Belgian international Radja Nainggolan (35) is leaving the European football stage after more than 16 years as a professional and moving to Indonesia. Like that “Nieuwsblad“ reports, the veteran has signed a contract with the bottom of the first division Bhayangkara Presisi Indonesia FC until the end of June and will also act as an ambassador for the country’s tourism authority.
The midfielder has been without a club for the last six months after his contract with Italian second division relegated SPAL ended. “In the last few months I have been contacted by more than a hundred agents. But when it came down to it, it suddenly became very difficult to get an offer on paper,” Nainggolan is quoted as saying by the paper. When he noticed how much Bhayangkara was trying to make a commitment, he “didn’t hesitate for a moment”. The club is in last place in Liga 1 Indonesia after 20 match days and is twelve points behind the rescue bank – 14 games are still open.
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“After a few months I started missing football. I still have a lot of fun when I’m on the pitch. And I’m really looking forward to doing that in Indonesia now. I’ve had a really nice few weeks here and I’m looking forward to exploring my country of origin (father is from Indonesia; editor) even further,” said Nainggolan, who played for five different clubs in Italy and for Royal Antwerp in his career FC played in Belgium. The 30-time national player was most often used for AS Roma (203 times), where he also reached his highest market value of 45 million euros at the end of 2017.
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