The Indonesian U-23 Team Never Underestimate Jordan
The Indonesian U-23 team is determined to beat Jordan in the final match of Group A. Ivar Jenner can appear again.
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Indonesia's defender, Justin Hubner (third from the left), leaps to thwart Australia's corner kick opportunity during the Group A match of the 2024 Asian U-23 Cup held at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar on Thursday (18/4/2024). Justin is expected to play from the start in the match against Jordan on Sunday (21/4/2024).
DOHA, SATURDAY — The Indonesian U-23 team will not underestimate Jordania in the final match of Group A U-23 Asian Cup 2024, Sunday (21/4/2024) at 22.30 WIB, at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha, Qatar. Even though they only need one point to advance to the quarter-finals, the "Garuda Muda" squad has the ambition to close the knockout phase with a win.
After undergoing the second match, Indonesia became the team with the greatest probability of being the second team to qualify for the knockout phase from Group A. Shin Tae-yong's children must determine their own fate to accompany Qatar , the home team, headed to the last eight.
I already have a team to get to know their (Jordan's) game. I will also observe two of their matches, then prepare the team according to the instructions we received about their strength.
The Indonesian U-23 national football team only needs to get one more point or a draw result when facing Jordan. With a collection of four points, Indonesia's position in second place will not be shaken.
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Even though Australia can beat Qatar on Sunday at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Al Rayyan, thereby closing the preliminary round with four points, Indonesia will still lock the runner-up position in Group A because of its head-to-head advantage. to-headwith ”Olyroos”, the nickname of the Australian U-23 team.
Midfielder and captain of Jordan, Wasee Al Riyalat (right), duels for the ball with Qatar player, Musthafa Mashal, in the Group A match of the 2024 AFC U-23 Cup on Thursday (18/4/2024) at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium.
Despite that, Shin does not want his squad to only chase the minimum target to advance to the knockout rounds in their debut participation in the U-23 Asia Cup. The South Korean coach wants Ernando Ari and his teammates to keep showing improvement in their performance and results after securing a victory against Australia on Thursday (April 18, 2024).
"We will try to improve and restore our level of play. I am confident that we will showcase a good game when facing Jordan," said Shin on Saturday (20/4/2024).
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Shin's belief is not just a figment of imagination. He has prepared optimally to face Middle Eastern teams which have often been a scourge for Indonesia at all team levels. This was demonstrated by holding two trial games against the Arabian Peninsula teams, namely Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, during the training camp ahead of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup in Dubai, UAE, early last April.
Shin acknowledged that the two exhibition matches were intended to prepare for facing two rivals in Group A, Qatar and Jordan. In addition to preparing tactical approaches for his team, Shin has also assigned the Indonesia U-23 analysis team to observe Jordan's two matches in Group A when facing Australia and Qatar.
Jordanian striker, Baker Kamal Kalbouneh (left), dribbles the ball amidst the guard of Qatar defender, Al Hashmi Al Hussain, in the Group A match of the 2024 Asian Cup U-23, Thursday (18/4/2024), at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium.
"I already have a team to understand their (Jordan's) game. I will also observe their two matches and prepare the team according to the instructions we receive about their strengths," said Shin.
Enhancement
Despite being more favored, Indonesia also needs to anticipate the rise of Jordan, who has just earned one point from two matches. Jordan's chance to advance to the knockout phase is not entirely closed. If they can defeat Indonesia and in another match, Australia fails to win against Qatar, then Jordan will be the one accompanying Qatar to the quarter-finals.
In the two matches that have been played, Jordan, nicknamed "The Knights", have also shown an improvement in performance. Especially, they have been able to execute a tactic to play actively with more dominant ball possession.
Also read: Indonesia vs Australia, a rare victory for "Garuda Muda"
Jordania lost 1-2 to Qatar, but they appeared superior in possession of the ball. Jordania U-23 Coach Abdallah Abu Zema's attention to his team improving their short ball game was shown by a collection of 489 passes. That was up from the 233 passes when they held Australia scoreless in the opening game.
Apart from quantity, the quality of Jordanian players' passes has also improved rapidly. From only achieving an accuracy rate of 55 percent when facing Australia, The Knights created 80 percent accurate passes when facing the home team.
Indonesian central defender, Muhammad Ferrari, shadowed Australian striker, Garang Kuol, in the Group A match of the 2024 Asia U-23 Cup, on Thursday (18/4/2024), at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar.
”We suffered an undeserved defeat. "We dominated, created chances, but we were unlucky against Qatar," said Abu Zema.
Abu Zema also promised a dominant performance in the match against Qatar when facing Indonesia. "Our hope to qualify still exists. Indonesia is a tough team to face, so we must do our best to maintain the spirit, focus, and commitment," said Abu Zema, former midfielder of the Jordanian national team from 1996-2004.
Stronger
In addition to the crucial victory over Australia, Indonesia will also have a stronger performance in the midfield with the return of defensive midfielder Ivar Jenner, who served a red card penalty in the match against Qatar. Ivar has the ability to maintain the game tempo and provide accurate breakthrough passes.
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The Jong Utrecht player has the opportunity to team up with Nathan Tjoe-A-On who performed well in the match against Australia. The presence of Ivar and Nathan will allow Marselino Ferdinan to return to the position of left winger. Although he primarily plays in the heart of the game, Marselino often receives the trust to play on the left outside because of his ability to improvise individual movements with dribbling.
In addition, Cerezo Osaka defender Justin Hubner was also able to play from the beginning in the match against Jordan. In the match against Australia, Justin played in the middle of the second half even though he did not have time to warm up at the start of the match because he arrived late in Qatar after traveling from Japan.
Indonesian U-23 midfielder, Nathan Tjoe-A-On, engaged in an aerial challenge with Australian winger, Adria Segecic, in the Group A match of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup on Thursday (18/4/2024) at Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar.
Justin could occupy one of the spots in the trio of center backs scheme. However, with a solid performance, the center-back trio of Rizky Ridho, Muhammad Ferrari, and Komang Teguh, Shin can place Justin as a defensive midfielder alongside Ivar. With that condition, Nathan will play as a fullback.
