Joining The Indonesian National Team, Arthur Irawan Is Ready To Face Competition

Athur Irawan (Photo: ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Arthur Irawan has just been announced to join the training camp (TC) of the national team to prepare for the 2022 World Cup Qualification, Friday, May 7. Apart from Arthur, there are 37 players in the TC which will be held since May 1, 2021.

Head coach Shin Tae-yong's squad will have their final three Group G matches at the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers, all of which take place centrally in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in June. The Garuda squad will play against Thailand on June 3, 2021, then Vietnam on June 7 and the United Arab Emirates on June 11, 2021.

Prior to that, the Indonesian national team will face two trial matches in the UAE against Afghanistan on May 25 and Oman on May 29. Although the national team is certain to not be able to continue their work in the 2022 World Cup Qualification because they always lose in five Group G matches, PSSI wants the national team to achieve the best results.

To give his best, PS Sleman defender Arthur Irawan emphasized that he is ready to compete fairly with other players for a place in the Indonesian national team. "The competition is also for the good of the national team," said Arthur when quoted by ANTARA, Saturday, May 8.

Arthur, who can fill several positions such as left back, right back and wing, has strong competitors in the national team such as Pratama Arhan, Rifad Marasabessy and Asnawi Mangkualam.

However, the 28-year-old footballer actually thinks that it is better if there are many good quality players in the national team so that national team coach Shin Tae-yong has many options for the 2022 World Cup Qualification.

Even so, Arthur emphasized that everything he would do in the national team TC was solely for the benefit of the team. Therefore, the footballer who has played with the youth teams of Spanish clubs Espanyol and Malaga promised to follow and accept all decisions from coach Shin Tae-yong.

"The most important thing is the team, not the individual," said Arthur Irawan.