Championship side Oxford United might have made the signing of the season, at least from the marketing department’s point of view.
19-year-old Indonesian forward Marselino Ferdinan signed as a free agent at Oxford, bringing his club new talent and a boatload of new Instagram followers. He currently has 26 caps and three strikes for his country. Last year, he guided Indonesia’s Under-22s to their first Southeast Asian Games triumph in 32 years.
The former KMSK Deinze player (Belgian second tier) could become the Championship’s first-ever Indonesian player if he hits the English pitch this season.
But Ferdinan’s army of 4 million Instagram followers is generating all the buzz. He holds roughly 23 times more followers than the club itself. As soon as ‘The U’ made the formal announcement on Monday, the handle gained 25,000 new followers in just three hours.
The post reached nearly 400k likes, receiving 100 times more engagement than the club’s average post. For comparison, in his new signing announcement, Dutch right back Hidde Ter Avest garnered just 10,000 likes.
Oxford expect big things from the talented Ferdinan
Oxford United is owned by Indonesian investors Anindya Bakrie and Erick Thohir, so it’s no surprise that interest has been generated in Indonesia’s wonderkid.
“I’m thrilled and still can’t believe I’m here. Being the first Indonesian-born player to play in the Championship if selected fills me with immense pride. I won’t take this opportunity for granted, and I’ll give 100% to make the most of it,” said Ferdinan.
“My message to everyone is to keep supporting the team and know that I’ll do my best to compete and represent this club.”
Oxford’s head coach, Des Buckingham, already rates the youngster as one of “the best young players” from Asia.
“The Club has strong ties with Indonesia and through our continuous conversations, we were made aware of Marselino’s ability,” he added.
Photo: ig/marselinoferdinan10
