Comments on U23 Indonesia vs U23 Brunei, 20:00 July 15: Rain of goals

Pre-match review

The opening match of Group A of the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 Championship will see the home team U23 Indonesia face off against U23 Brunei, the team considered the weakest in the group. This is an excellent opportunity for U23 Indonesia to win all 3 points, thereby creating psychological momentum as well as an advantage in goal difference right from the first round.

U23 Indonesia entered this year’s tournament with great expectations from fans. Under the guidance of coach Gerald Vanenburg, a former player who won EURO 1988 with the Netherlands, the team from the archipelago is showing its ambition to conquer the regional throne.

In recent statements, Coach Vanenburg did not hesitate to set the goal of winning all matches to be crowned champion at the U23 Southeast Asian tournament, considering this a perfect preparation before the U23 Asian qualifiers and the journey to defend the SEA Games gold medal at the end of the year.

With home advantage, a balanced force and high morale, U23 Indonesia will likely choose an attacking style of play from the very first minutes to control the game and look for an early goal. Against an opponent that is rated much lower than U23 Brunei, this is an opportunity for the home team's main strikers to score points in the eyes of the coaching staff.

On the other hand, U23 Brunei came to the tournament with the main goal of gaining experience. They are unlikely to compete for a ticket to the semi-finals and will face many challenges against an Indonesia team that is rated much higher in terms of class, physical strength and international experience. The yellow team is expected to choose a defensive style to minimize the number of goals conceded.

With the clear difference in skill level, this will likely be a one-sided match with a rain of goals for the home team. U23 Indonesia has a great opportunity to start the tournament with a big win, creating momentum for the journey to conquer the regional title.

Form, head-to-head history

Recent form shows a stark contrast between the two teams. Indonesia U23 have won 2 and lost 3 of their last 5 matches, scoring 8 goals and conceding 8. Despite failing to qualify for the 2024 Olympics after a 0-1 defeat to Guinea U23, the archipelago nation still impressed with a 3-2 win over South Korea U23 and a 4-1 win over Jordan U23. They are showing great potential thanks to their youthful squad and energetic attacking style.

Meanwhile, U23 Brunei is completely outclassed. They lost all 5 recent matches, scored only 1 goal and conceded 30 times. Heavy defeats such as 0-11 against U23 Syria or 0-9 against U23 Jordan in the 2023 AFC U23 qualifiers partly reflect the limited level and depth of this team.

The history of confrontation is also completely in favor of U23 Indonesia. In the last 3 encounters, Indonesia won all, scoring a total of 12 goals without conceding any - including a devastating 8-0 victory at the 2019 SEA Games and a 2-0 victory in the 2015 U23 Asian qualifiers. With a huge difference in strength and class, the possibility of U23 Brunei creating a surprise is almost impossible.

Force information

Both teams are at full strength.

Expected lineup

U23 Indonesia : Supriadi, Ferarri, Arel, Pamungkas, Mikael Tata, Darwis, Juliansyah, Fikri, Dion, Caraka, Arjuna.

U23 Brunei: Norhwan, Irwan, Syariee, Danial, Aiman, Zikry, Syafiq, Hadi Aiman, Azhari, Sapawi, Naqiuddin.

Score prediction: U23 Indonesia 5-0 U23 Brunei

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