The Indonesian team lost heavily to Japan 0-4 at home on the evening of November 15. This result caused the team from the archipelago to finish bottom of Group C with 3 points/5 matches. Meanwhile, Japan is firmly at the top of the group with 13 points.
The heavy loss to Japan at home has disappointed the Indonesian media and fans. From the start, we have aimed for 3rd or 4th place in the group to enter the 4th qualifying round. Therefore, we still have hope. Therefore, the Indonesian team will try our best in the remaining matches, coach Shin Tae-yong shared.
According to the regulations, the top two teams in each group in the third qualifying round will qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup. Meanwhile, the 3rd and 4th teams in the groups will enter the 4th qualifying round to compete for the next spots.
Mr. Shin Tae-yong emphasized that with the strength of the Indonesian team, it will be very difficult for them to compete for 1st and 2nd place in Group C. However, the opportunity for them to compete for 3rd and 4th place is still very open.
In fact, in Group C, except for the Japan team that was too strong to convincingly lead the group, the remaining teams are sticking close together. The gap between the second-placed team, Australia, and Indonesia is only 3 points. The positions of the teams in the group will change after only 1 match.
Meanwhile, President of the Indonesian Football Federation (PSSI) Erick Thohir still believes in the strategy that he and his colleagues have chosen, raising the level of the Indonesian team with naturalized players, finding opportunities to participate in the World Cup. Mr. Thohir emphasized that as the leader, he is ready to resign if the plan fails.
"We still have 5 matches ahead, 3 home matches, 2 away matches. We need nine points to finish third or fourth. The question is do the players trust the PSSI project or not? Because if not, I will resign, because that is my responsibility, Mr. Thohir shared with CNN Indonesia.
Even coach Hajime Moriyasu believes in Indonesia's World Cup chances. He said: I think coach Shin Tae-yong has also completed his job well despite his limited time coaching the national team.
The Indonesian team has new players, making it difficult for the team to bring them together because they do not have much time to play together. In the future, if we can naturalize quality players, Indonesia's chance of participating in the World Cup will be greater".
In the next match in Group C, Indonesia will continue to play at home against Saudi Arabia. In the first leg, the two teams drew 1-1. Meanwhile, Japan will visit China - who won 7-0 in the first leg.
