In the second match of Group A taking place on the evening of July 27th at Pakansari Stadium (Bogor), Cambodia could not create a surprise against the host Indonesia. Mitchell Baker shone with a hat-trick in his debut for the national team, while Sandy Walsh and Jens Raven scored the remaining two goals. Cambodia's only goal came from an own goal by Indonesian goalkeeper Nadeo Argawinata.
Speaking after the match, coach Koji Gyotoku expressed regret that his team suffered a heavy defeat but said that this is also an opportunity for players to accumulate experience when facing a strong opponent.
It's a pity that we have to accept defeat in this match. However, the players have gained more experience when facing a team that owns many quality players like Indonesia," the Japanese strategist shared.
Although Cambodia lost both of their first two matches in the group stage, Mr. Gyotoku still believes his players can improve their performance in the remainder of the tournament.
The tournament is not over yet. We have two more matches ahead and the whole team will try our best to get the best results," he emphasized.
After two legs, Cambodia still has no points when they also lost to Singapore with a score of 1-2 before that. This result puts the Angkor team at a disadvantage in the race to win a ticket to the semi-finals of ASEAN Cup 2026.
According to the schedule, Cambodia will meet Timor-Leste on August 3rd in turn before closing the group stage with a match against the Vietnamese team on August 7th. To maintain hope of going further, coach Koji Gyotoku and his team need to aim for favorable results in both remaining matches.
