Shin Tae-yong Is Satisfied With The Appearance Of The Indonesian National Team In The Two 2026 World Cup Qualification Matches

JAKARTA - The Indonesian national team won two points from the first two matches of the 2026 World Cup Qualification Third Round of the Asian Zone.

The Garuda squad drew 1-1 against Saudi Arabia (September 6, 2024) at the King Abdullah Stadium and 0-0 against Australia (September 10, 2024) at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium.

The result made Shin Tae-yong satisfied with the appearance of his team. The reason is, the Indonesian national team won points against the giant labeled team in Asia.

The two points also made the world football public, especially Asia, highlight the stunning appearance of the Indonesian national team. The extraordinary discipline of Garuda employees stole their own attention.

"In the match against Saudi Arabia and Australia, the players played very well and showed a good performance. They played according to what we planned," Shin Tae-yong said on the AFC website.

Most recently when facing Australia, Shin Tae-yong's plans to steal points also worked. Discipline in defense went well.

The Garuda squad understands the big name Socceroos so that it appears solid in defense and uses counter attacks to reduce opponents.

"We know Australia is better physically. So, we are prepared to defend first and try to counterattack," said the South Korean coach.

In fact, at the last meeting before the 2026 World Cup Qualification stage, Australia beat the Indonesian national team 4-0 in the 2023 Asian Cup in January 2024.

However, in a span of about eight months, the Indonesian national team managed to improve and raise levels.

In the end, Australia was frustrated and failed to break into the Garuda Squad goal. With possession of more than 60 percent and 19 shots, Graham Arnold's men struggled to dismantle Indonesia's neat defense.

Having failed to win against Indonesia made Graham Arnold furious. You see, as far as the two matches that have been undertaken, Australia has only won one point after losing 0-1 against Bahran in the inaugural qualifying match.

"We wasted many chances. We kept creating chances, but didn't take them. It's disappointing not to be able to win from our first two games."

"However, there are still eight more games to go through. We will continue to fight. Even so, today (against Indonesia) is a day we are frustrated," said Graham Arnold.

Meanwhile, the success of stealing two points from two strong Asian teams made the Indonesian national team more confident in looking at the next match.

Nearby, the Garuda Squad will face a home match against Bahrain and China in October 2024.

"Personally, I am very satisfied because we did what we wanted to do. We will prepare for the next match against Bahrain and China."

"To be honest, in that match it will not be much different from what we have done," said Shin Tae-yong.

The Indonesian national team is currently in fourth place in Group C standings in the Third Round of the 2026 World Cup Qualification in the Asian Zone with two points.

Japan still leads the standings with six points followed by Saudi Arabia (4 points) and Bahrain (3 points). The fifth and sixth place is occupied by Australia (1 point) and China without points.

Second Group C Match Results Third Round Of World Cup Qualification 2026

September 10, 2024

Bahrain vs Japan 0-5

China vs Saudi Arabia 1-2

Indonesia vs Australia 0-0