Indonesian football boss makes shocking statement, should Vietnam U.23 team be worried?

President of the Indonesian Football Federation (PSSI), Mr. Erick Thohir, announced that the U.23 team of this country will have to compete again with U.23 Vietnam in the final match of the Southeast Asian tournament, and will definitely be crowned champion because they will play at home.

Extraordinary achievement of U.23 Indonesia

According to Mr. Erick Thohir: "The Indonesian U.23 team's victory in the semi-final against Thailand U.23 was extraordinary. We won in a tense penalty shootout. This means we have reached the final twice in a row. I witnessed it last time in 2023, in Thailand. The only difference is that now we are the home team, so if we can win, we will definitely win."

The U.23 Indonesian team players hugged each other in joy after defeating the Thai team in a tense penalty shootout.

Photo: Dong Nguyen Khang

Meanwhile, Madam Pang (billionaire Nualphan Lamsam), President of the Football Association of Thailand (FAT), was very regretful when her team lost in the penalty shootout even though they had led 1-0 in regulation time, but let the opponent equalize 1-1 in the 84th minute.

Madam Pang wrote a comforting message on her social media account: "You guys did your best. The U.23 Thailand team lost on penalties. The Indonesian team won 7-6 (1-1 draw in regulation time) to enter the final against the Vietnamese team. The U.23 Thailand team will compete for third place with the Philippines team."

U.23 Vietnam midfielder admits the team is lacking a real 'goal scorer'

At the 2023 Southeast Asian U.23 tournament held in Thailand, the Indonesian U.23 team reached the final against the Vietnamese U.23 team, but lost 5-6 in a penalty shootout (0-0 draw in regular time). This was the second consecutive time the Vietnamese U.23 team won the Southeast Asian championship, after the first time in 2022 when they beat the Thai team (1-0) in the final when held in Cambodia.

The Vietnam U.23 team, currently led by coach Kim Sang-sik, has entered the final of the U.23 Southeast Asia for the third consecutive time after defeating the Philippines with a score of 2-1 on July 25. The young "Golden Star Warriors" will also have the opportunity to set a record by winning the U.23 Southeast Asia Championship for the third consecutive time. But this time they will have to go through a huge challenge, which is to face the host team U.23 Indonesia right at the "fire pit" Gelora Bung Karno in Jakarta at 8:00 p.m. on July 29.

Striker Jens Raven, the number 1 hope of U.23 Indonesia, is likely to be absent from the final due to injury.

Photo: Dong Nguyen Khang

According to CNN Indonesia, Mr. Erick Thohir's statement will certainly attract a large crowd to Gelora Bung Karno Stadium to support the home team in the final match against U.23 Vietnam. Even a full stadium, with a capacity of more than 77,000 seats.

This is certainly an advantage that Indonesian fans will have to take advantage of to create strength for their team, after the U.23 Indonesia players went through more than 120 minutes of intense competition in the semi-final match against U.23 Thailand on July 25.

Mr. Erick Thohir also admitted: "Coach Gerald Vanenburg's players had a very difficult day. It must also be mentioned that the team was missing two key players Arkhan Fikri and Toni Firmansyah in midfield. Therefore, they had to face many difficulties.

This was not an easy match (semi-final against U.23 Thailand). In the first half, the Thai team had the advantage. Luckily, after they took the lead, we still tried and got an equalizer from Jens Raven. I was very happy that Hokky Caraka also scored in the penalty shootout. It was a great goal."

Philippine press regrets for home team, praises U.23 Vietnam after dramatic semi-final match

CNN Indonesia also said that after a tough semi-final match, the U.23 team will be given a break to recover. They hope to have two key players Arkhan Fikri and Toni Firmansyah back before the final match against the U.23 Vietnam team on July 29.

Watch the full 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 Football Championship Mandiri Cup™ on FPT Play, visit http://fptplay.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/sep-lon-bong-da-indonesia-tuyen-bo-gay-soc-doi-u23-viet-nam-co-nen-lo-185250726100554583.htm