Pressure on the Chinese team
China is at the bottom of Group C, the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup in Asia. The team lost 0-7 to Japan, 1-2 to Saudi Arabia and 1-3 to Australia.
Meanwhile, Indonesia – despite being the lowest ranked team in the FIFA rankings – is playing successfully. They are unbeaten in their first three matches, earning three points. In the previous match, they drew 2-2 away to Bahrain. This result was somewhat regrettable for the Southeast Asian team as they were equalized in the 90+9 minute.
With the current difficult situation, the Chinese team is facing great pressure. According to Sohu, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) has also planned to fire coach Branko Ivankovic regardless of the result of the match with Indonesia. Even the identity of the Croatian strategist's replacement is already available. That is Jia Xiuquan, who led the Chinese U20 team and the Chinese women's team.
With the current strength of the Chinese team, it is very difficult for them to compete for first and second place in Group C, thereby getting a direct ticket to the World Cup. Therefore, their goal is to compete for third and fourth place to enter the fourth qualifying round. With that direction, the results of the matches with Indonesia and Bahrain (in November 2024) will be very important for the Chinese team.
Head to head record China vs Indonesia
The Indonesian team is confident to play away against the Chinese team, based on their stable performance and high-quality naturalized players, who are getting more and more compatible as they play. However, the head-to-head record is in favor of Branko Ivankovic and his team.
According to statistics released by Bola (Indonesia), the Indonesian team has faced the Chinese team 17 times in all competitions. Of these 17 matches, the Indonesian team has only won 3 matches, drawn 3 matches and lost 11 matches.
The last time the Indonesian national team beat the Chinese team was on February 20, 1987, 37 years ago. At that time, the Southeast Asian team won their opponent with a score of 3-1.
After this victory, the Indonesian team has not often met the Chinese team. In the last 9 confrontations between the two teams, The Garuda (the nickname of the Indonesian team) has lost 7 matches, drawn 2 matches and has not won any.
The most recent meeting between the Indonesian team and the Chinese national team took place in the 2015 Asian Cup qualifiers at Shaanxi Stadium, Xi'an, on November 15, 2013, Indonesia lost with a score of 0-1.
In the second qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup, the Chinese team met two Southeast Asian teams. At home, they beat Singapore 4-1 and drew Thailand 1-1.
With home field advantage, and the return of two key attackers Alan and Wu Lei, the Chinese team is confident of getting the first point in Group C.
The China vs Indonesia match will take place at 19:00 on October 15.
