Riko Simanjuntak
Personal information
Full name Riko Simanjuntak
Date of birth (1992-01-26) 26 January 1992 (age 32)[1][2]
Place of birth Pematangsiantar, Indonesia
Height 1.58 m (5 ft 2 in)[3]
Position(s) Right winger
Team information
Current team
 Persija Jakarta
Number 25
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012−2013 PSMS Medan 9 (3)
2013–2014 PS Bangka 18 (7)
2015 Gresik United 3 (1)
2016−2017 Semen Padang 66 (4)
2018− Persija Jakarta 147 (9)
International career
2018–2023 Indonesia 11 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 30 March 2024

Riko Simanjuntak (born 26 January 1992) is an Indonesian professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Liga 1 club Persija Jakarta. Before he joined Persija, he had changed clubs four times. He is sometimes called Ucok and is often a mainstay player for the team in Indonesian competitions.[4]

Club career

PSMS Medan

In 2010–12, before he joined PSMS Medan, Simanjuntak was an amateur futsal player in Pematangsiantar, North Sumatra. He and his brother Johan Simanjuntak always played together in one team. Simanjuntak plays as a right flank, and Johan as a left flank. Once, PSMS's Coach Suimin Diharja watched their futsal match together. Simanjuntak and Johan's speed, agility, and sharpness made the coach interested in recruiting him. Finally, Simanjuntak and Johan joined PSMS and played for PSMS Medan who were then playing in the Indonesia Super League. This was Simanjuntak's first football club.[5]

PS Bangka

After the chaotic league dualism, a year later, Simanjuntak did not get a League 1 team. He finally joined and played for Liga 2 club PS Bangka. This is where he showed his abilities in the field. In the 18 games he played, Simanjuntak scored 7 goals.[5]

Gresik United

In the 2015 season, Simanjuntak signed a year's contract with Persegres Gresik United. He made his debut in a 0–1 away win against Barito Putera on 11 April.[6] He scored his first goal in a 2–1 home win against Borneo, scoring after 45 minutes.[7]

Semen Padang

In 2016 Simanjuntak signed with Semen Padang for the Indonesia Soccer Championship A. He made 66 league appearances and scored 4 goals for Semen Padang.[8]

Persija Jakarta

In 2018, Simanjuntak signed a contract with Indonesian Liga 1 club Persija Jakarta. He made his debut on 23 March 2018 in a match against Bhayangkara. On 8 June 2018, Simanjuntak scored his first goal for Persija against TIRA-Persikabo in the 85th minute at the Sultan Agung Stadium, Bantul.

International career

Riko played for the Indonesia national team at the 2018 AFF Championship and the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.

In March 2023, Riko was named to Indonesia's squad by Manager Shin Tae-Yong for two friendly matches against Burundi. The selection was met with surprise, as it marked his return to the national side after four years.[9]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 30 March 2024
Club Season League Cup[a] Continental[b][c] Other[d] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
PS Bangka 2014 Indonesia Premier Division 18 7 0 0 – 0 0 18 7
Gresik united 2015 Indonesia Super League 3 1 0 0 – 0 0 3 1
Semen Padang 2016 ISC A 32 2 0 0 – 0 0 32 2
2017 Liga 1 34 2 0 0 – 7 1 41 3
Total 66 4 0 0 0 0 7 1 73 5
Persija Jakarta 2018 Liga 1 27 3 0 0 8 0 7 0 42 3
2019 Liga 1 32 0 8 0 8 1 3 0 51 1
2020 Liga 1 2 0 0 0 – 0 0 2 0
2021–22 Liga 1 29 0 0 0 – 8[e] 1 37 1
2022–23 Liga 1 30 5 0 0 – 2 0 32 5
2023–24 Liga 1 27 1 0 0 – 0 0 27 1
Career total 234 21 8 0 16 1 27 2 285 24
  1. ^ Includes Piala Indonesia
  2. ^ Appearances in AFC Cup
  3. ^ Appearances in AFC Champions League
  4. ^ Appearances in Indonesia President's Cup
  5. ^ Appearances in Menpora Cup

International

As of match played 28 March 2023
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Indonesia 2018 5 0
2019 4 0
2023 2 0
Total 11 0

Honours

Club honors

Persija Jakarta

Individual

References

  1. ^ "Riko Simanjuntak". persija.id. Archived from the original on 21 December 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  2. ^ "Riko Simanjuntak: Profile". worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  3. ^ "Riko Simanjuntak". www.pssi.org. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  4. ^ Boombastis.com. "Berawal dari Jualan Mainan Anak-anak, Pemain Berdarah Batak Ini Sukses Tembus Timnas".
  5. ^ a b "Sebelum Masuk Timnas, Ini 5 Klub Yang Pernah Dibela Riko Simanjuntak". idntimes.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  6. ^ "Barito Putera 0-1 Gresik United". milikbersama03blogspot.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  7. ^ "Gresik United 2-1 Borneo". soccerway.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  8. ^ "Kalteng Putra kontrak 21 pemain, ini daftar namanya". kalteng.antaranews.com.
  9. ^ "Si Anak Hilang Comeback ke Timnas Indonesia, Dipanggil Shin Tae-yong untuk Lawan Burundi". bolasport.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  10. ^ "Persija Juara Liga 1 2018". detik. 9 December 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  11. ^ "Tumbangkan Bali United, Persija Juarai Piala Presiden 2018". kompas. 17 February 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  12. ^ Ridwan, Muhammad (25 April 2021). "Persija Jakarta Juara Piala Menpora 2021". goal.com. Goal. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  13. ^ "Tim Terbaik Go-Jek Liga 1 2018". liga-indonesia.id. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
  14. ^ "AFF AWARDS: Quang Hai, Pitsamai claim top honours". ASEAN Football Federation. 8 November 2019. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
  15. ^ "AFC Cup All-time XI: Wide midfielders | Football | News | AFC Cup 2021".

External links

Persija Jakarta – current squad
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