Andik’s future with Selangor to be decided in two weeks

PETALING JAYA: Winger Andik Vermansyah’s fate with Selangor will be known in two weeks.

The 26-year-old has rejoined the Red Giants after being out for four months due to a knee injury while playing for Indonesia in the AFF Cup last December.

“The team doctors have cleared Andik to play and he looks good in training. But he still lacks match fitness after being sidelined for long,” said Selangor coach P. Maniam yesterday.

“I will give my recommendations to the FAS (Football Association of Selangor) on which foreign players to be retained in the second transfer window (from May 15-June 11). I think a decision will be made in the next two weeks,” added Maniam.

Selangor already have the full quota of four imports – Liberian striker France Doe, Nigerian centreback Ugo Ukah, Romanian winger Victor Astafei and midfielder Juliano Mineiro of Timor Leste.

To accommodate Andik, Selangor are expected to release either Astafei or Mineiro as their contracts end in June. Diminutive Andik, who skippered Selangor to the Malaysia Cup final last season, said he would love to play for the Red Giants again.

“I had offers from four Indonesian clubs but I rejected them because I want to play for Selangor. I’m happy with Selangor and I want to be a better player here,” said Andik.

The Red Giants are fourth in the 12-team Super League with 16 points from 10 matches. Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) lead with 23 points followed by Pahang (20) and Kedah (19).

Selangor, who off-loaded several key local players due to financial constraints at the start of the season, are already out of the FA Cup. They were beaten by Premier League side Negri Sembilan in the second round.

“If I’m given a chance to play in the second half of the season, I’ll try to help Selangor win the Malaysia Cup. It’s difficult for us to win the Super League because the top three teams have a big gap over us,” said Andik, a Malaysia Cup winner with Selangor in 2015.