Ernando Ari's Epic Responds to Shin Tae-yong and Indonesia's Disappointment
Ernando Ari has once again shown his worth holding the title of Indonesia's best goalkeeper at the moment.
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Ernando Ari, the Indonesian goalkeeper, tried to block the shooting space of South Korean striker Jeong Sang-bin during the quarterfinal match of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup on Friday (26/4/2024) at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar. Ernando was awarded the title of best player in the game.
There is a story of redemption behind the success of Ernando Ari to ward off two kicks from South Korean U-23 Team players and his success in carrying out his duties as Indonesia's 10th executor in the penalty shootout round of the quarter-final match U-23 Asian Cup 2024, Friday (26/4/2024) WIB, at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha.
Going through a penalty shootout drama against South Korea brought painful memories back to Ernando during the final match of the 2023 AFF U-23 Cup at Rayong Stadium, Thailand in August 2023. At that time, the Persebaya Surabaya goalkeeper was the sixth penalty taker for Indonesia. Unfortunately, his kick was blocked by Vietnamese goalkeeper Quan Van Chuan, causing the "Garuda Muda" team to fail to become Southeast Asia champions.
Seven months have passed, and Ernando still cannot completely forget that disappointing moment. Nevertheless, he has the momentum to redeem himself in Thailand. This was achieved in the quarterfinal match of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup against Thailand.
Being the last executor in the first round, Ernando kicked a hard, flat kick to the right side of South Korean goalkeeper Baek Jong-bum. He successfully redeemed himself from his failure in Thailand and immediately celebrated by raising his fists in the air while facing the technical area of the Indonesian U-23 Team on the sideline.
Indonesia's goalkeeper, Ernando Ari, celebrated after defending the twelfth penalty kick taken by Kang Hee-lee from South Korea in the quarterfinals of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup on Friday (26/4/2024) at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar. Ernando made two saves during the penalty shootout.
"I have experience in the AFF Cup (U-23 2023) when I made Coach Shin (Tae-yong) sad because I failed to execute a penalty and we didn't become champions. I want to redeem myself in this opportunity. I can do my tasks better and I want to help the team become champions for the coach," said Ernando, who was named the best player in the quarter-final match, in a press conference after the game.
Ernando's performance has been awarded twice as the "best player of the game" in the 2024 U-23 Asia Cup. Previously, he was awarded the title in the match against Australia.
In addition to successfully performing his duties as an executor, Ernando also managed to thwart two penalty kicks from South Korean players. This occurred during the sixth penalty kick by Kang Sang-yoon, and the twelfth kick by "Taegeuk Warriors" player Lee Kang-hee, which secured Indonesia's victory.
Have practiced
Ernando revealed that the Indonesian coaching team has also prepared penalty shootout exercises. As a goalkeeper, he certainly gets more training portion to anticipate penalties.
Also read: Indonesia vs South Korea Penalty Shootout Drama, Why Was Justin Hubner's Penalty Repeated?
Those penalty drills helped us have confidence.
Indonesian U-23 goalkeeper, Ernando Ari, denied Australia's penalty opportunity in the Group A match of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup on Thursday (18/4/2024) at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha. Ernando's brilliant performance helped Indonesia secure the victory.
In addition, he also did not forget to practice penalty kicks. According to Ernando, other Indonesian players often joked when he was practicing as a penalty taker. They joked about his failure in the previous U-23 AFF Cup.
"The penalty practice helped us gain confidence. When I saw Arkhan (Fikri) fail, I told myself that I had to be able to do it. Moreover, after the South Korean goalkeeper was able to score a goal, I was determined to score a penalty goal. I am very confident that I can score that penalty goal," said Ernando, who is 1.78 meters tall.
Ernando also relieved the tension of the penalty shootout when he celebrated by dancing in front of South Korean player Lee Kang-hee, whose shot he saved. Ernando's appearance made the 9,105 spectators at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium roar. The majority of Indonesian supporters cheered with joy, while the minority of South Korean fans held their heads.
During the 2024 U-23 Asia Cup, Ernando has made three penalty saves against the opponents. He also managed to deflect the penalty execution from Australian striker Mohamed Toure in the second game of the group stage.
Also read: Eliminate South Korea, Indonesia One More Victory at the Paris Olympics
Three goalkeepers of the Indonesian U-23 team, Daffa Fasya, Ernando Ari, and M Adi Satryo (from right to left), are listening to instructions from goalkeeper coach, Kim Bong-soo, during a training session at the Qatar University Training Center, Doha, on Wednesday (17/4/2024).
Throughout the penalty shootout drama, U-23 Indonesian team coach Shin Tae-yong appeared tense on the sidelines. He wrote down the names of Indonesian penalty takers on a white piece of paper that he held for the majority of the match duration.
Shin said that Ernando was part of the generation of Indonesian players who he had looked after since he first took charge of the Indonesian National Team at the end of 2019. Their presence, said Shin, was the main reason why he was confident that he could bring Indonesia qualified for the semifinals on debut participation in the U-23 Asian Cup.
"The players, such as Ernando beside me, then there is Rizki Ridho, Witan Sulaeman, and Pratama Arhan, are players who have been with me for four years. I understand their exceptional qualities," said Shin.
He continued, "My duty is to motivate the players. If I can do that, I have no doubt that they can produce good results in this tournament. I tell them, we can be the champions. I tell the players to believe in me and follow me, then we will play in the final."
Also read: No Compromise from STY for South Korea
Indonesian U-23 goalkeeper Ernando Ari was embraced by his teammates after blocking Australia's penalty opportunity in a Group A match of the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup on Thursday (4/18/2024) at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha. Ernando's outstanding performance helped secure Indonesia's victory.
Korean U-23 Assistant Coach Myung Jae-yong congratulated Indonesia on their victory in the penalty shootout. He appreciates the struggle of his team, who were able to equalize and hold off Indonesia for 120 minutes with 10 players.
"The players did their job well. We were just unlucky in the penalty shoot-out," said Myung, who took over the role of Hwang Sun-hong, who received a red card towards the end of the second half.
The impressive performance of Ernando will once again be anticipated in the semifinal match on Monday (29/4/2023). Indonesia will face the winner of the match between Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia. Hopefully, Ernando's magical hands can once again bring luck to Indonesia in order to reach the final of the AFC U-23 Cup 2024 and secure a spot in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
