Shin Tae-yong admitted Thailand has many quality players. However, he assessed that the Indonesian players also have a mentality that is no less good.
By
I GUSTI AGUNG BAGUS ANGGA PUTRA
·3 minutes read
AP PHOTO/SUHAIMI ABDULLAH
Fachruddin Aryanto of Indonesia, right, and Irfan Fandi of Singapore compete for the ball during the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 semi-final second leg match between Indonesia and Singapore in Singapore, Sunday, Dec. 26, 2021.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Luck has never been on the side of the Indonesian national football team when playing against Thailand in the final of the AFF Cup. The records of the two teams show that Thailand is superior to Indonesia. This year Thailand is again the favorite thanks to the quality of the players it has. Meanwhile, Indonesia hopes to defeat Thailand from the mentality of coach Shin Tae-yong.
The two teams will meet again in the AFF Cup final at the Singapore National Stadium, Wednesday (29/12/2021) at 19:30 WIB. Indonesia has a bad record, always having trouble overcoming Thailand in crucial AFF Cup matches. When the AFF Cup was still called the Tiger Cup in 2000, Indonesia was beaten by Thailand 1-4 in the final at that time. Then, in the 2002 edition of the Tiger Cup, Indonesia was defeated by the “War Elephant” team through a penalty shootout 2-4 after a 1-1 draw in normal time.
Indonesia's inferiority to Thailand continued when the tournament changed its name to the AFF Cup in 2008. In the 2008 final, Indonesia failed to lift the championship trophy after being defeated by Thailand 3-1 on aggregate. The "curse" of Indonesia continued to the 2016 AFF Cup edition. In the final match, the "Garuda" team, which locked in a 2-1 victory in the first match in the country, had to extend its title drought after losing 0-2 in the second match which was held in Thailand.
In this year's edition, Indonesia could repeat this bad record again. Thailand has scored 12 goals in the AFF Cup. The team under coach Alexander Polking also recorded five games without conceding a goal which made it one of the teams with the strongest defense.
Since the group qualifying stage until the final this year, Thailand is undefeated, including when it beat Vietnam in the semifinals with a 2-0 aggregate. In fact, Indonesia struggled to hold Vietnam to a draw, 0-0, in the group stage.
AP PHOTO/SUHAIMI ABDULLAH
Indonesia head coach, Shin Tae Yong reacts at the touchline during the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 semi-final second leg match between Indonesia and Singapore in Singapore, Sunday, Dec. 26, 2021.
Shin admitted Thailand has many quality players. However, he assessed that the Indonesian players also have a mentality that is no less good. "Since the first match in the group stage, we have prepared well for mental problems," Shin said at a press conference, on Tuesday (28/12).
The South Korean coach tried to transmit the fighting mentality to the players. He said he had experience handling various teams. Shin was the coach of the South Korean national team at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. At that time, Shin made a phenomenal achievement by beating and eliminating defending champions Germany 2-0.
From that experience, I apply the same strategy and mentality to the players. We will try again to be able to apply it again in this team.
The result of the match made the world public gasp. These sweet memories in Russia are now trying to be presented by Shin in the Indonesian team. "From that experience, I apply the same strategy and mentality to the players. We will try again to be able to apply it again in this team," he said.
Polking has analyzed the Indonesian game. According to the Brazilian coach, Indonesia is filled with young players who have speed and are good at exploiting space in the opponent's defense with quick counter attacks.
"I already have a strategy to deal with it. They are a young, energetic, hard-working and dangerous team. It all depends on how we handle it," he said.
In the first leg of this final, Thailand’s main goalkeeper Chatchai Butprom could not perform because he suffered a knee injury.
