ASEAN Cup 2026 is the first official tournament of coach John Herdman since taking over the Indonesian national team at the beginning of this year. Although considered one of the championship contenders, the English coach said that the regional tournament is only in the long-term development plan of the archipelago team.
Sharing with the Indonesian press before the ASEAN Cup, Mr. Herdman emphasized: "Our main goal is to win a ticket to the World Cup. After that, we want to be able to compete stably at the Asian level.
According to the 51-year-old coach, each match at the ASEAN Cup 2026 will be an opportunity for players to accumulate experience and affirm their ability in the journey of building a force.
Players must prove that they are ready to compete. The best way to do that is to take the field and face challenges," Mr. Herdman said.
Indonesia is in Group A with Vietnam, Cambodia, Timor Leste and Singapore. Among the opponents, the British strategist assesses Vietnam as the biggest challenge, especially when the defending champion owns many quality naturalized players and has a positive preparation before the tournament.
This is also the first time Herdman has led a team at the ASEAN Cup. Indonesia entered the tournament with a deep squad when they called up 12 naturalized players. Faces such as Jordi Amat, Justin Hubner, Thom Haye, Ivar Jenner, Ragnar Oratmangoen or Jens Raven are expected to form the main squad.
With the available resources, Indonesian fans are not only looking forward to a positive result at the ASEAN Cup 2026 but also expect the team to end their six-time runner-up streak at the number one tournament in Southeast Asia.
