Indonesia had a successful start to the 2024 AFF Cup, beating Myanmar 1-0 away. Asnawi scored the only goal in the 75th minute. Coach Shin Tae-yong used many young players in the starting lineup in this match, but they still played solidly.
In the second half, Shin Tae-yong sent more experienced players, Asnawi Mangkualam, Victor Dethan and Rafael Struick, to replace Alfriyanto Nico, Zanadin Fariz and Arkhan Kaka. Indonesia's game improved and they made it concrete with the only goal from Asnawi.
“The opening match of any tournament is always difficult. The Indonesian players played better than I expected in today’s match. We got three points, which is very important. As for the Myanmar team, they also played very well today,” said Shin Tae-yong.
Despite playing with the U23 squad, Indonesia still showed dominance over the Myanmar team, demonstrating consistent play like the "big" team showed in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Asia.
Statistics from CNN Indonesia show that Shin Tae-yong's team controlled the ball 58% compared to their opponents' 42%. The Indonesian team had 10 shots, 4 of which were on target, and had 10 corner kicks. On the Myanmar side, they only had 7 shots, 3 of which were on target, and had 3 corner kicks. The Indonesian team's passing accuracy rate for the entire match was 80%, higher than their opponents' 73%.
More importantly, the Indonesian team showed desire, confidence and had many options to turn the game around. After the match, Myanmar coach Myo Hlaing Win emphasized that the two teams were quite equal in terms of game play. However, he admitted that the Indonesian team had more reserve personnel, which made the difference.
In general, in the last 11 matches, the Indonesian team has only lost 3 matches. Mr. Shin Tae-yong has done a very good job of maintaining a consistent playing style from the 2026 World Cup qualifiers to the 2024 AFF Cup. This will certainly cause many difficulties for the Vietnamese team when the two teams meet on December 15.
This match will likely decide the top spot in Group B. In the last 3 meetings, Indonesia has always won against Vietnam.
The Vietnam - Indonesia match will take place at 8:00 p.m. on December 15 at Viet Tri Stadium, Phu Tho.
