Charlie Saputra Yang

Charlie Saputra Yang is a football player from Jakarta, Indonesia. Yang plays at Persija and he wears the number 23 shirt.

Early life and career

Charlie was born to Chandra and Liana Lie in 1979. His family moved to Jakarta when he was eight years old.

Charlie then was transferred to Persija's youth team and the coach trained him until he was 17. Then, he was promoted to the first team and now is currently playing for them.

Brief trial in Birmingham

In 2004, Yang, under the recommendation of the manager of Persija, flew to Birmingham and had a trial with Aston Villa F.C. After a couple of weeks, Charlie was deemed too young and incompetent for the English football. He went to Birmingham City F.C instead and had a trial too. Birmingham accepted him, but after three months he was sent back to Jakarta because he didn't have the legal proceedings to play in England.

Purported move to Liverpool F.C.

In 2006, Liverpool F.C. reportedly made a bid for him. The fee was reported to be around £5 million to £10 million. Persija however bashed this rumor and is keen on keeping him until his contract expires in 2010.

National team

Yang has played in the Indonesian U-17 National Football Team and also the Indonesia U-19 Team. He now plays in the senior Indonesia national football team. He has scored 56 goals in his 45 appearances for his country.

Personal life

Yang is a heavy drinker. However, this doesn't seem to affect his football career. He said in an interview, "Although I drink, I have never been drunk. I also have never drunk and then came to train at the club." The club has released a few statements regarding Yang's addiction. The club said that they had advised him not to drink again. The final statement released by the club was, "He has never broken the club rule. But if he breaks one of it because of his addiction, he will be expelled."