The Indonesian team had an unfortunate draw with Bahrain on the evening of October 10. They led 2-1 but unfortunately conceded a goal in the 90+9 minute, thereby only gaining 1 point.
Regardless, this is still a good result, maintaining Indonesia's unbeaten streak in the 3rd qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup. Coach Shin Tae-yong and his team currently have 3 points, ranking 5th on the rankings, just 1 point behind the team above Bahrain.
The fourth-placed teams will continue to enter the fourth qualifying round to compete for the last two tickets to the biggest football festival on the planet. And that is the most feasible goal for Indonesia. Currently, the top position in Group C is occupied by Japan with 9 points. Australia, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain all have 4 points.
This development will open up more opportunities for Indonesia. There are still 7 matches ahead for them to compete. The next match, the archipelago team will face China away on October 15.
China are in poor form, having lost all three of their matches. If Indonesia can beat this opponent, they will become the Southeast Asian team with the best record in the third round of World Cup qualifiers (6 points).
Previously, this record was held by the Vietnam team when they had 4 points after 10 matches in the 3rd qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup, finishing bottom of the group. The Thai team also tried this round and only had 2 points in 2018.
