Persib Bandung's busy season begins

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — An anomaly is being experienced by Persib Bandung in the 2025-2026 competition season. As the defending champion of the BRI Liga Super Indonesia, "Maung Bandung" will actually undergo the busiest match period since the beginning of August. In addition to starting the competition in the domestic arena, Persib will embark on an adventure in the AFC Champions League Two.

Persib will host Semen Padang in the first week of the Super League on Saturday (9/8/2025) at 15:30 WIB, at the Gelora Bandung Lautan Api Stadium, Bandung, West Java. Considering the strengths of both teams, the squad coached by Bojan Hodak is clearly above one of the representatives from Sumatra in this season's Super League.

The quality of Persib is reflected in the accumulated market value of the squad amounting to Rp 92.73 billion. This figure positions Maung Bandung as the team with the most expensive squad in Indonesia's top-tier competition. Meanwhile, Semen Padang only has a squad strength valued at Rp 51.02 billion.

In addition, Persib has a good record in five home matches in the season opener. They have recorded five victories and only one draw. The only match without a win occurred when they were held to a 1–1 draw by Madura United in the opening match of the 2023-2024 season.

Persib midfielder and captain Marc Klok emphasized that three points are crucial for his team in their opening match of the 2025-2026 season against Semen Padang. Moreover, Persib has the honor of kicking off the competition in front of tens of thousands of Bobotoh fans in the stadium stands.

"New season, first match, everyone is very enthusiastic about it. We must win at home. That is our target," said Klok at the press conference ahead of the match at GBLA Stadium, Friday (8/8/2025).

Persib coach Bojan Hodak stated that the first match will not be easy. He considers Semen Padang, which finished in 13th place last season, to have a better quality of players.

In addition, Persib also has a rather poor home record when facing "Kabau Sirah." In the Liga 1 era since 2017, Maung Bandung has never defeated Semen Padang in "Kota Kembang." A score of 2-2 was recorded in the 2017 edition. Then, in the 2019 and 2024-2025 seasons, the matches between the two teams in Bandung ended in identical draws, 1-1.

"Tomorrow (Saturday) will be a different match. We must play aggressively. The duel will be challenging, but our goal is singular, which is to secure three points," said Hodak, who will mark his 76th match in charge of Persib.

Persib will present with a new color. The four available center backs are new names, namely Patricio Matricardi, Frans Putros, Julio Cesar, and Hamra Hehanussa. In the heart of the game, new mainstays are also present, such as Wiliam Marcilio, Luciano Guaycochea, and Berguinho.

Uilliam and Saddil Ramdani are expected to become new hopes for Maung Bandung. The only new player whose appearance is in doubt is the center forward from Brazil, Ramon Tanque, who suffered an injury in the final test match against Western Sydney Wanderers on Saturday (2/8/2025).

Klok stated that the training camp in Bandung and Bangkok (Thailand) along with several exhibition matches have helped improve the cohesion of the Bandung squad. He is optimistic that all Persib players can perform cohesively when facing Semen Padang.

"Preseason preparations are going well. The team's old and new players are already building a strong bond," said Klok.

Victory over Semen Padang is non-negotiable for Persib. In addition to wanting to start the season positively, Persib needs three points as a foundation to begin the competition in the Asian Champions League Two.

Four days after facing Kabau Sirah, Maung Bandung will once again welcome a visiting team. Manila Digger, a club ranked second in the 2024-2025 Philippine League, will challenge Persib for the only remaining ticket in the qualifying round of the AFC Champions League Two for the eastern zone.

The Asian Champions League qualifying match took place at the GBLA Stadium on Wednesday (13/8/2025). The winner of this duel will join 16 other teams in the eastern zone, which includes representatives from Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, the Philippines, and Australia, to compete in this second-tier Asian competition.

Unlike previous seasons, the AFC Champions League Two—formerly known as the AFC Cup—will receive significant attention. The reason is that Cristiano Ronaldo, along with Al-Nassr, will compete in this tournament by starting the group stage competition in the western zone.

In another match on Friday, Borneo's winger, Mariano Peralta, established himself as the first goal scorer of the BRI Super League 2025-2026. He scored with a curling left-footed shot in the 66th minute against Bhayangkara FC.

The goal was initiated by an interception made by Borneo's central midfielder, Kei Hirose. In just five touches, Hirose initiated a quick counterattack and then delivered a pass to Peralta, who was positioned on the left side of the Bhayangkara defense, the team from Lampung.

The match held at Segiri Stadium, Samarinda, East Kalimantan, was won by Borneo with a narrow score of 1-0. In addition to Peralta scoring the first goal of the 2025-2026 season, the "Pesut Etam" squad is also the first team to earn three points in the new era of Indonesia's top-tier competition.