The two new players who are about to receive Indonesian citizenship are Mees Hilgers and Eliano Reijnders. Mees Hilgers plays as a central defender while Eliano Reijnders usually plays as an attacking midfielder. Notably, both players are playing in the Dutch national championship. The naturalization procedures for Mees Hilgers and Eliano Reijnders were approved by the Indonesian People's Representative Council on August 17. It is expected that the documents of both players will continue to be completed at the plenary meeting of the Indonesian People's Representative Council, taking place on September 19.
CNN Indonesia also added that the Indonesian Football Federation (PSSI) is speeding up the process to register Mees Hilgers and Eliano Reijnders for the matches between the Indonesian team and Bahrain (October 10) and China (October 15) in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Mees Hilgers (left) is excited about the plans of the Indonesian team.
Of these two players, Mees Hilgers is highly appreciated by the media in the archipelago. Mees Hilgers is 23 years old this year and is currently playing for the Twente club. After 5 rounds of the Dutch national championship in the 2024-2025 season, Mees Hilgers started 4 matches and helped Twente get 8 points, ranking 6th. Mees Hilgers was born in the Netherlands and has an Indonesian mother. In 2023, Mees Hilgers was contacted by PSSI to naturalize but he refused because he wanted to play for the Dutch national team. Also in that year, Mees Hilgers was named by the Dutch Football Federation (KNVB) in the training list, preparing for two friendly matches against U.21 Romania and U.21 Belgium. However, in early 2024, coach Shin Tae-yong personally flew to the Netherlands to meet Mees Hilgers and he was convinced by the Korean strategist's plans.
Not only playing well in the domestic league, Mees Hilgers also showed impressive performance in European tournaments. At the beginning of the 2024 - 2025 season, he played impressively when Twente FC participated in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers. Mees Hilgers' excellent performances helped him catch the eye of many Dutch football giants such as PSV Eindhoven, Ajax Amsterdam and Feyenoord.
Mees Hilgers is currently valued at 7 million euros by Transfermarkt , the third highest in Twente's squad (after Michal Sadílek - 8 million euros and Sem Steijn - 10 million euros). After taking the oath, officially becoming an Indonesian citizen, Mees Hilgers will also become the most expensive player in Southeast Asia.
Mees Hilgers will become the most expensive player in Southeast Asia after successfully naturalizing.
Meanwhile, the remaining player in this naturalization batch of the Indonesian team, Eliano Reijnders, is equally talented. The player born in 2001 received a lot of attention from Bundesliga and Premier League teams in the summer transfer market of 2024. Although he is only valued at 650,000 euros, Eliano Reijnders plays an important role in the playing style of PEC Zwolle Club. Eliano Reijnders played all 5 matches from the beginning of the 2024 - 2025 season (3 times as a starter, 2 times as a substitute).
In addition to the attacking midfielder position, Eliano Reijnders can also play well on both wings and as a false striker. The presence of Eliano Reijnders promises to help the Indonesian team's attacking ability become stronger.
Eliano Reijnders will help the Indonesian team's attack become stronger
Swearing in to become Indonesian citizens right in the Netherlands
According to Bola Times , instead of returning home to complete the final naturalization procedures, Mees Hilgers and Eliano Reijnders will be sworn in right in the Netherlands. A PSSI spokesperson revealed that Indonesian football officials assessed that both were busy with their plans in the Netherlands, so PSSI would "break the rules" and not affect their training and competition.
PSSI Secretary General Yunus Nusi said that he had met with Indonesian Youth and Sports Minister Dito Ariotedjo and believed that the naturalization of Mees Hilgers and Eliano Reijnders would go smoothly. Mr. Yunus Nusi affirmed: “The Minister assured us that we will do our best, complete the administrative work as soon as possible and send these two players to compete with the Bahrain and China teams. We hope that they will help Indonesian football become stronger, on par with the big names in Asian football.”
The Indonesian national team (in white) is getting stronger with the appearance of two new players.
Bola Times assessed that with the presence of Eliano Reijnders and Mees Hilgers, "Garuda" can launch a starting lineup with 11 completely naturalized names in the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup, when there are too many players playing in Europe. Previously, when the Indonesian team held Saudi Arabia to a 1-1 draw and the Australian team to a 0-0 draw, only Witan Sulaeman and center-back Ridho were the two remaining native players in coach Shin Tae-yong's squad.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bong-da-indonesia-lai-lam-viet-nam-lo-that-tim-co-ngoi-sao-gia-200-ti-anh-la-ai-185240918152333736.htm
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