World Cup hopes have faded away.

The loss to Japan means the Indonesian national team still has no wins in the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in the Asian region. They had only three draws previously, along with a 1-2 loss to China in the previous round. Therefore, with only 3 points after 5 matches, Coach Shin Tae-yong's team is at the bottom of Group C, making their chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup increasingly slim.

The Indonesian team (in red jerseys), despite having a squad of naturalized players, was still far inferior to the Japanese team.

Entering the match against Japan, coach Shin Tae-yong made no secret of his intention to put all his efforts into securing his first victory. The South Korean coach fielded his strongest lineup, featuring the best naturalized players from the Indonesian national team. Only defender Rizky Ridho was a native Indonesian.

However, despite their best efforts, the Indonesian team's naturalized stars could only keep up with the Japanese players, who possessed a higher level of skill and a highly versatile and flexible playing style, easily controlling the game and scoring spectacular goals.

The enthusiastic support of the home fans at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium helped the Indonesian players play on equal terms with the Japanese team for the first few minutes of the match. However, they quickly collapsed when their opponents accelerated their attack in the final 15 minutes of the first half. In the 35th minute, a beautifully orchestrated attack through the center gave Japan the lead with an own goal by Indonesian defender Justin Hubner under pressure from striker Koki Ogawa.

Five minutes later, striker Takumi Minamino easily increased the score to 2-0 from an assist by Kaoru Mitoma, giving the Japanese team a huge advantage over Indonesia in the first half.

In the second half, the Japanese team once again stifled their opponents' efforts with an early offensive strike, increasing the score to 3-0 thanks to a goal by Hidemasa Morita in the 49th minute. This effectively ended any hope of a comeback for the Indonesian team.

The Japanese team was overwhelmingly superior, securing an easy victory against Indonesia.

Having conceded three quick goals, the Indonesian team then rallied to try and score a goal to reduce the deficit, partly thanks to the Japanese players easing the pressure. However, all of Indonesia's efforts only resulted in a few chances to trouble the opposing defense, but they were unable to convert them into goals to restore their hopes of winning.

Even after Japan successively substituted their stars like Ritsu Doan, Kaoru Mitoma, and Takumi Minamino from the 60th minute onwards, Indonesia could do nothing more against an opponent that was far too strong and well-balanced in terms of personnel. Furthermore, in the 69th minute, substitute Sugawara Yukinari capitalized on a lax Indonesian defense to extend the lead to 4-0.

The Indonesian team therefore suffered another defeat, making their chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup extremely slim and perhaps fading away. Meanwhile, the Japanese team maintained their unbeaten record, leading Group C with 13 points after 5 matches (4 wins and 1 draw), far ahead of the teams behind them, including Australia, Saudi Arabia, and China, by 7 points. They have virtually secured a direct spot in the 2026 World Cup for the Asian region.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dan-sao-nhap-tich-indonesia-bat-luc-hoan-toan-truoc-nhat-ban-hy-vong-world-cup-tat-ngam-185241115205724033.htm