In the group stage of the AFF Cup (new name ASEAN Cup) 2024, the Indonesian team is in Group B with the teams of Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and the Philippines.
In this tournament, coach Shin Tae-yong only brought a squad consisting mostly of U21 players. In the announced list, there are 2 players over 21 years old: defender Pratama Arhan (born in 2001), Asnawi Mangkualam (born in 1999).
The remaining players were all born after 2003, the youngest being striker Arkhan Kaka (born in 2007).
Before the tournament, Indonesian team captain Asnawi Mangkualam shared some remarkable things with the media. The player born in 1999 said that he and his teammates can easily defeat the Vietnamese team.
"Many naturalized players joined the Indonesian team, which is very good because they have made a lot of impact on the team's performance. Finally, we can win matches against the Vietnamese team.
Now, things have started to get better as the Indonesian team can beat the Vietnamese team more easily than before. At that time, it was difficult for the Indonesian team to beat the Vietnamese team. Such victories help the Indonesian team a lot. The spirit and confidence of the Indonesian players have also increased, which is a positive thing," Asnawi Mangkualam shared.
Asnawi Mangkualam's sharing is completely reasonable when currently, the Vietnamese team is always rated lower than the Indonesian team. In 2024 alone, the Vietnamese team received 3 defeats against the team from the archipelago country.
At the AFF Cup 2024, the Vietnamese team will host Indonesia at Viet Tri Stadium on December 15.
