Indonesia's very wise approach at the AFF Cup

First is the player who contributed greatly to the only goal of the match for the Indonesian team against Myanmar, defender Asnawi Mangkualam, considered a "veteran" player but only 25 years old. Player Pratama Arhan with his "powerful throw-in weapon" leading to scoring opportunities is also only 22 years old. Both of these players have the most appearances for the archipelago team at this year's AFF Cup, 47 times and 51 times respectively, according to ESPN Asia .

Through the AFF Cup, the Indonesian team is looking for additional players to help them achieve their goal of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

The Indonesian team's starting lineup also featured many young players, such as central defenders Kadek Arel and Dony Tri Pamungkas (both 19 years old) and Muhammad Ferarri (21 years old). In the middle of the field, midfielder Arkhan Fikri (also 19 years old) played very maturely, controlling the central area well, while in the front line, striker Arkhan Kaka was only 17 years old, but also showed a lot of promise.

Coach Shin Tae-yong has made a rather bold lineup arrangement and even tried out a few positions that are not his forte in the lineup. Through that, the main purpose of this Korean coach is to create diversity in the playing style of the Indonesian team. As well as looking for additional personnel for the first team competing in the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup in Asia (currently ranked 3rd in Group C with 6 points after 6 matches), according to CNN Indonesia .

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"Shin Tae-yong had four interesting experiments in the match against Myanmar and they were quite successful. He moved some players from their usual positions, such as Pratama Arhan from left-back to right wing. Alfriyanto Nico, who usually plays as a striker or right winger, now plays as a left winger. Meanwhile, left-back Dony Tri Pamungkas has now moved to center-back. Finally, Asnawi Mangkualam, who usually plays as a right-back or defensive midfielder, was brought on at the beginning of the second half to play on the left wing," CNN Indonesia commented.

"These changes helped the Indonesian team finally break the deadlock to score the opening goal and win the opening match of the AFF Cup, although it was quite difficult. However, if we look at it broadly, above all, we must admit that this is a very interesting and wise approach of Indonesian football today, when they are very persistent in the goal of building a diverse player resource to be able to qualify for the World Cup, or advance to the next Asian Cup," journalist Gabriel Tan of ESPN Asia expressed.

The Indonesian team has made rapid progress thanks to naturalized players.

Also according to Gabriel Tan: "Indonesia is clearly extremely ambitious to win the AFF Cup, a tournament in which they have finished second 6 times in history and have never tasted the taste of being crowned. But it is also very possible that they will not pursue this goal at all costs just to be immediately satisfied with the AFF Cup championship.

The further goal of this country's football is to build a solid foundation for the future. It can be seen that even the most veteran player, Asnawi, is only 25 years old and is playing in the AFF Cup, which is enough to say a lot about the ambitious project of this country's football," Gabriel Tan emphasized.

After a 1-0 win over Myanmar on the opening day of Group B of the 2024 AFF Cup, the Indonesian team returned home to prepare to welcome Laos at 8:00 p.m. on December 12 at Manahan Stadium.

Next, coach Shin Tae-yong's team will travel to Phu Tho province to prepare for the most crucial match in the group, when they meet the Vietnamese team at Viet Tri Stadium at 8:00 p.m. on December 15. These will be two decisive matches for the semi-final tickets. In the final match of the group stage, the Indonesian team will meet the Philippines at home on December 21.

Asean Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2024 is broadcast live and in full on FPT Play, at: http://fptplay.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bao-khu-vuc-danh-gia-cach-tiep-can-rat-khon-ngoan-cua-doi-indonesia-tai-aff-cup-185241210113314087.htm