Coach Shin Tae-yong and Indonesia receive orders from ‘big boss’ PSSI: Must win, enter AFF Cup semi-finals

The Indonesian team causes concern

“I never said I don’t have any goals,” Mr. Erick Thohir emphasized when answering the Indonesian press on December 20, after the Indonesian team dropped 2 places on the FIFA rankings in December 2024 (from position 125 to 127). world), because of poor results in Group B AFF Cup 2024 (ASEAN Championship).

“The Indonesian team must maximize each match to win points to increase the FIFA rankings, including matches at the AFF Cup. I never said there was no goal. We won against the Myanmar team (1- 0), to tie with Laos 3-3, and lose to Vietnam (0-1). These results are not enough, regardless of the team we play with win. Every test must increase maximum and certain There must be results attached,” Mr. Erick Thohir affirmed.

PSSI President also gave a direct order to coach Shin Tae-yong: “The decisive match with the Philippines team (at 8:00 p.m., December 21), we must win. The Indonesian team must enter the AFF Cup semi-finals. We want The team must compete with every team at every level in the world. First place or second place is not important, the important thing is to reach the semi-finals. I always have a specific goal for the Indonesian team, never is non-existent”.

In Group B AFF Cup 2024, after 3 matches, except for the Lao team that was officially eliminated (having played all 4 matches), the remaining teams still have a chance to continue, including the Vietnamese team, which is holding the top spot in the group with 7 points. With a score difference of +4, the Indonesian and Myanmar teams ranked next with the same 4 points and the same difference of 0. The Indonesian team ranked above thanks to a direct confrontation, winning 1-0 against Myanmar. The other team, the Philippines, ranked 4th with 3 points.

In the final match, the Vietnamese team will decide to continue and top the group if they draw or win against the Myanmar team at 8:00 p.m. on December 21 at Viet Tri’s home field in Phu Tho province. The Indonesian team will also determine their chances of continuing if they win against the Philippines.

The Indonesian team and coach Shin Tae-yong are under a lot of pressure, having gone through two recent consecutive matches without winning, in which they let the Laos team draw 3-3 at home and then lost to the team. Vietnam team score 0-1.

The rest period of nearly a week after 3 consecutive matches in the group stage may be a mental boost to help coach Shin Tae-yong and his team calm down to look forward to the key match with the Philippines, the team that just had a performance. Impressively, the Vietnamese team drew 1-1 on December 18.

Coach Shin Tae-yong himself also admitted that the Indonesian team needs a better performance than the past 3 matches, and winning against the Philippines team is the first task. Before, wait for the results from the Vietnam team’s match against Myanmar taking place at the same time, to know the possibility of entering the AFF Cup semi-finals or not and whether the group will be first or second in the group.