The Indonesian national team officially said goodbye to ASEAN Cup 2026 after a 1-1 draw against Singapore in the last match of Group A on the evening of August 7. This result caused coach John Herdman's team to only get 7 points, behind Vietnam and Singapore, thereby missing the opportunity to participate in the semi-finals.
Before the match against Singapore took place, the President of the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) Erick Thohir had remarkable shares about the team's strength.
We didn't play well in this tournament, because this is not really a team with the best players from Indonesia," said Erick Thohir.
According to the head of Indonesian football, many players playing in Europe cannot join the national team because the ASEAN Cup does not belong to the FIFA competition system.
Because many of our players are playing in Europe, they cannot participate in the ASEAN Cup 2026. This is not a tournament belonging to the FIFA system," PSSI Chairman said.
Mr. Erick Thohir's statement was made in the context that Indonesia did not perform as expected at this year's tournament. After 4 rounds, the island nation team won 7 points and had to stop right from the group stage.
Previously, after the 0-3 defeat to the Vietnamese team, naturalized defender Justin Hubner also explained the reason by saying that Indonesia did not have enough force. This player said that the ASEAN Cup is not a FIFA tournament and the Indonesian team lacks many players playing abroad.
Indonesia's failure to pass the group stage also marked the second consecutive ASEAN Cup that this team stopped early. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese team closed the group stage with the first place in Group A, while Singapore won second place to participate in the semi-finals.
