Naturalized star of U23 Indonesia travels overnight, plays 2 matches in 2 days

On the evening of April 18, center-back Justin Hubner played his first match for U23 Indonesia in the 2024 AFC U23 Championship finals. He entered the field in the 72nd minute, replacing Jeam Kelly Sroyer in the match against U23 Australia.

This was Justine Hubner's second match in two consecutive days. Before that, the player played the full 90 minutes for Cerezo Osaka in the J.League Cup. His team defeated Grulla Morioka 1-0. After the match, Justine Hubner immediately traveled to Qatar to participate in the match against U23 Australia.

Evaluating the performance of the player born in 2003, Bola newspaper wrote: " Hubner came on as a substitute. In the 19 minutes he was on the field, he did not show much. This is understandable because he just arrived in Qatar on the morning of April 18. Hubner was the last name to join the U23 Indonesia team. He came to Qatar after being allowed by Cerezo Osaka ."

Justine Hubner is one of four naturalized players for the Indonesian U23 team in this year's AFC U23 Championship, along with Nathan Tjoe-A-On, Patrick Struick and Ivar Jenner. Before the tournament, coach Shin Tae-yong was worried that Hubner and Tjoe-A-On would not be able to participate because their clubs would not release them.

However, in the end, the two players were still allowed to return to play for the U23 Indonesia team to participate in the tournament in Qatar. These naturalized players are all members of the Indonesian national team, have the advantage of playing experience, so they are expected to shine and carry the U23 team.

Justin Hubner has an impressive resume. He trained at the Dutch training centers Willem and Den Bosch before joining Wolverhampton in early 2020. Last March, Hubner moved to Japanese club Cerezo Osaka.

Indonesian Football Federation President Erick Thohir highly appreciated Justine Hubner's presence. He said before the victory over U23 Australia: " After the challenges the players have faced, especially the first match against host U23 Qatar, Hubner is also present. He will strengthen the defense after Ivar Jenner was suspended for the match against U23 Australia. The whole team will recover and fight again ."

3 points against U23 Australia gives Justine Hubner and her teammates an advantage to advance. If U23 Indonesia does not lose in the final match against U23 Jordan, they will be sure to enter the quarterfinals.

Van Hai

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