Rafael-Zico Value Bagus Player, Shin Tae-yong: But Organizationally, There Is Still Less

U-20 Indonesia national team striker Rafael Struick (right) is fighting over the ball with Slovak players in a friendly match in Spain, Saturday (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - U-20 Indonesia national team coach Shin Tae-yong assessed that the individual qualities of two naturalized players Rafael Struick and Zico Soree are good but still need to increase their cooperation with the squad nicknamed "Garuda Nusantara".

"They have good individual abilities. However, organizationally it is still lacking," said Shin, uploaded on the PSSI TV Youtube account, Sunday.

According to the South Korean tactician, the shortcomings are reasonable because Rafael and Zico have just joined the Indonesian U-20 national team. They just trained with Marselino Ferdinand and friends in Spain, Friday (18/11).

The next day, Rafael and Zico also competed against Slovakia, where Indonesia lost 1-2. However, Rafael scored one goal in that match.

"They haven't attended normal training sessions with other players, but immediately competed with the team," Shin Tae-yong added.

Meanwhile, two other naturalized players, Ivar Jenner and Justin Hubner, called Shin, have been able to adapt to the U-20 national team because both of them have tasted four test matches with the U-20 national team both in Turkey and Spain.

Zico Jamai Soree is a 19-year-old striker and now plays for the U-21 PEC Zwolle team in the Netherlands. While Rafael Struick (19 years old) is a winger for ADO club The Hague, a team competing in the Dutch second tier league.

Justin Hubner (19 years old) is a 1.87-meter high defender with a career in the Wolverhampton Wanderers team in England. Meanwhile, Ivar Jenner (18 years old) is a Dutch midfielder and now plays for the U-21 FC Utrecht squad in the Netherlands.

The four of them are projected to defend Indonesia in the 2023 U-20 World Cup.

During the training camp, the national team prepared for the U-20 Asian Cup and the 2023 U-20 World Cup became several friendly matches both in Turkey and Spain.

During the training camp in Turkey, November 16, coach Shin Tae-yong's squad carried out seven test matches, of which three ended in wins for Indonesia.

The 2023 U-20 Asian Cup will be held in Uzbekistan, 1-18 March 2023. Meanwhile, the 2023 U-20 World Cup will take place in Indonesia, May 20 to June 11, 2023.