Indonesia vs Guinea, Fierce Battles on Both Sides of the Field

Indonesia and Guinea will present a battle between wingers to win the final ticket to the Paris Olympics.

AFC

Marselino Ferdinan, an Indonesian winger, celebrated his second goal against Jordan in the final match of Group A in the 2024 U-23 Asia Cup on Sunday (21/4/2024) at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha.

The wing players of the Indonesian U-23 team will determine the final result in the 2024 Olympic playoff match against Guinea, Thursday (9/5/2024) at 20.00 WIB, at the Clairefontaine National Training Center, France. The big opportunity for “Young Garuda” to score goals is from the wing attackers. On the other hand, the attackers and wing-backs need to increase their defensive discipline so they don't return home with their heads bowed from France.

Out of six matches in the 2024 Under-23 Asia Cup, Indonesia scored eight goals, five of which were contributed by the attacking trio of Rafael Struick, Marselino Ferdinan, and Witan Sulaeman. Rafael and Marselino each scored two goals, while Witan produced one goal.

However, the goals scored by the three attackers were only scored in one match. Marselino and Witan contributed goals to crush Jordan 4-1 in the final match of the group phase, while Rafael scored a brace or two goals in the quarter-final duel against South Korea.

In the two matches for the 2024 Olympics ticket in the semifinals and the third place playoff of the 2024 U-23 Asia Cup, the three top attackers of Coach Shin Tae-yong failed to perform their duties in the attacking sector. In the matches against Uzbekistan and Iraq, Marselino only managed to produce one shot each that missed the target.

Also read: Indonesia vs Guinea, Twin Ambition to End Long Wait to Appear at the Olympics

Rafael, who was absent in the game against Uzbekistan due to accumulating yellow cards, also failed to show his sharpness in front of Iraq's goal. He only created one speculative shot that went over the crossbar. Meanwhile, Witan was able to initiate an opportunity that brought Indonesia's goal against Iraq after his pass was headed out by an Iraqi defender.

In the six matches in Qatar 2024, Shin's attacking scheme was very effective in the matches against Jordan and South Korea. When in possession of the ball, Indonesia played in a 3-2-5 formation.

ANALISIS TAKTIK

The Indonesian attacking process that placed five players in parallel at the front line when facing South Korea in the quarterfinals of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup. Three forwards moved more towards the center, while two wingbacks penetrated into the opponent's final third of defense.

The attacking tactics enabled Indonesia to press the opposing wing-backs and have an advantage in the number of players in midfield. This is because three attackers will roam in the middle with two central midfielders.

Also read: Dewangga Arrives, Indonesia U-23 Gets Additional Back Line Strength

When the ball is in the hands of the wingbacks, one of the three nearest forwards will also be near the wingbacks to present short pass or long cross options.

Guinea has players who play in Europe so they are not just any team. We have to anticipate that.

Indonesia's third goal against Jordan and the opening goal in the match against South Korea were the result of the success of that game plan.

This tactic helps Indonesian players not only freely play the ball in the final third of the opponent's defense, but also increases their chances of winning second balls or wild balls from sweeps or collisions with opposing defenders.

ANALISIS TAKTIK

The process of Indonesia's attack that initiated the third goal towards Jordan's goal in the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup. Five players, consisting of two wing backs and three forwards, are the mainstay of Coach Shin Tae-yong to dismantle the opponent's defense.

However, the attacking approach can be well anticipated by Uzbekistan and Iraq. They have been able to successfully block the flow of the ball from the back and midfield. The opposing team's antithesis must find a way out by the Indonesian coaching team.

The US U-23 team displayed an effective playing style to defeat Guinea. In the match won by the US 3-0 last March, in Girona, Spain, two early goals were scored by the US through penetration from the wing side, which began with a long pass from a third of the field.

To face Guinea, Shin is very careful. He analyzed the gameplay of the team nicknamed "National Elephant" through recordings of their matches since last weekend.

Also read: Falling from Iraq, Indonesia Knocks on the Final Door to the Paris Olympics

"They are a very good and strong team. Guinea has players who play in Europe, so they are not an ordinary team. We need to anticipate that," said Shin in a statement to the media on Wednesday (8/5/2024) evening.

Anticipate defense

Despite presenting a good performance in attack, Indonesian wingers often fall short when facing opponents' attacks from the wings.

Uzbekistan and South Korea took advantage of lax play from both wings to score the first goal in the match against Indonesia.

ANALISIS TAKTIK

In the match against Jordan in the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup, two Jordanian players were seen pressing the Indonesian defender, Muhammad Ferrari, who was in control of the ball. This situation is certainly very dangerous in the final third of Indonesia's defense zone.

In fact, in some situations, the Indonesian players' pressing was not too tight when the opponent initiated an attack from the wing. Sometimes Indonesia is outnumbered in the initial process of the opponent building an attack from the outside.

The first goal scored by South Korea, which equalized the score at the end of the first half, for example, shows the minimal pressure on South Korean wingbacks who have been in the middle third of the field and entered Indonesia's zone.

This makes them freer to collaborate with wing players standing next to the left-wing defender of Indonesia, Pratama Arhan. Players in front of Arhan, such as Rafael Struick and Nathan Tjoe-A-On, are less tightly guarding South Korean players.

ANALISIS TAKTIK

The build-up process of South Korea's attack which resulted in an equalizing goal against Indonesia in the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup quarter-final match. In the picture you can see the South Korean players are very free and without pressing. to pass the ball to the left side of the Indonesian defense.

A similar thing occurred in the situation with Uzbekistan's first goal which destroyed Indonesia's mentality.

Uzbekistan players dominate the left side of Indonesia's defense, enabling them to deliver crosses that please the attackers in the "Garuda Muda" penalty box.

ANALISIS TAKTIK

The initial process of Uzbekistan's attack, which ended with their first goal against Indonesia's goal in the semi-final of the 2024 Asian U-23 Cup. This situation once again shows the vast space for Uzbekistan players to launch an attack from the left side of Indonesia's defense.

Wahyu Tanoto, legend of the Indonesian national team, reminded that the "Garuda Muda" squad must try to play pressing consistently to close down space for the Guinean players. Even though Guinea's strength is relatively blind, said Wahyu, the principle of playing to suppress remains the same.

”Even against world caliber teams, we have to maintain the opponent's man-to-man marking and they must not be left alone in order to develop the game. "We must narrow down the opponent's movements," said Wahyu, who defended Indonesia in the 1980s.

The freedom of Guinea's midfield players to dominate the game is a double-edged sword for Indonesia. Guinea has a midfielder who graduated from Barcelona, Illaix Moriba, who can deliver breakthrough passes and long diagonal passes to outsmart Indonesia's defense line.

On the other hand, Guinea also has fast wingers who dare to penetrate with individual skill. Guinea has shown this in five matches at the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations. They are dominant in attacking opponents from both sides of the field.

It is no wonder that the battle of matching effective attacks from both teams' wings will dominate the duel in Clairefontaine. The team that can collectively better contain their opponent's attempts to penetrate their defense will have a greater chance of securing a ticket to Paris 2024.