Arthur Irawan is a rarity in Indonesian football.

He comes from Jakarta but received his education in the game in England, Spain and Belgium with the likes of Manchester United, Espanyol and Malaga. In 2017 he returned back home to spend his first full season playing in Indonesia.

But it was far from plain-sailing. 

In this podcast he talks about his injury-hit time with Persija Jakarta last term, education abroad, Manchester United, his tech start-up, his religion, dealing with criticism on social media, moving positions and where he might play his football next season.

He discussed:

2:00 How he ended up at Manchester United’s academy

3:29 He famous team-mates at Manchester United

4:39 The differences between English, Spanish and Indonesian football

9:19 his spell in Belgium and his first major injury

9:59 Returning home

11:20 Signing with PSM in pre-season and Persija for the start of GO-JEK Traveloka Liga 1

12:20 Settling on right-back after moving around different positions

13:10 His injuries at Persija

14:10 Teco’s season with Persija in 2017

15:30 What it takes to win Liga 1

16:30 The success of foreign coaches in Indonesia

17:36 The first of season of GO-JEK Traveloka Liga 1

18:20 The key things that Liga 1 needs to fix. The possibility of a new regional format

20:33 His situation for next season

21:20 His tech start-up. Augmented reality football cards. His role with the Spanish 'La Liga'

23:11 The lack of facilities and coaching for younger players in Indonesia and how Arthur is trying to help out

24:11 Spain’s involvement with Indonesia. The Espanyol game against Persija in the summer

25:00 His Christianity and the challenges of being vocal about it

29:00 His use of social media and dealing with ‘haters’ and why he turned off his comments

31:28 His cap for Indonesia

32:41 His primary aim for next season. And why it is a big season for him.

OTHER LINKS

Arthur Irawan’s website

Twitter

Instagram

YouTube