Indonesia U-23 Team's Big Ambition Begins at 2025 ASEAN Championship

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – The U-23 Indonesia team will participate in four prestigious tournaments from July 2025 to January 2026. Under Coach Gerald Vanenburg, the "Garuda Muda" squad is targeted to achieve the best performance. The hope for a championship trophy is aimed to be realized starting from the ASEAN Championship Mandiri Cup 2025.

In a span of six months, the U-23 team will compete in four tournaments consisting of two at the Asian level and two others in the Southeast Asian arena. The tournaments are the ASEAN Championship 2025 (July 2025), the qualification for the U-23 Asian Cup 2026 (September 2025), the SEA Games 2025 (December 2025), and the U-23 Asian Cup 2026 (January 2026).

The Chairman of PSSI, Erick Thohir, does not want the U-23 Indonesian team to play half-heartedly in the 2025 ASEAN Championship, even though the tournament marks Gerald's debut in managing Garuda Muda.

Moreover, Indonesia will be playing at home. Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium in Jakarta will be the venue for Indonesia's matches. Other matches will be held at Patriot Candrabhaga Stadium in Bekasi, West Java. The tournament will take place from July 15 to 31.

In the group stage draw, on Friday (30/5/2025), in Bali, Indonesia was placed in Group A alongside Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brunei Darussalam. In Group B, the defending champion Vietnam will be challenged by Cambodia and Laos. Meanwhile, Thailand, Myanmar, and Timor Leste will meet in Group C.

The format of three groups in the preliminary round was presented for the first time at the 2025 ASEAN U-23 Championship. In the previous four editions, teams were only divided into two groups, with the two best teams from each group competing in the semifinals. In the 2025 edition, in addition to the three group champions, one of the best second-placed teams will join the final four phase.

“This (tournament) is a good warm-up for the U-23 team and coach Gerald Vanenburg. We have also been looking forward to meeting Malaysia. Therefore, ensure that the SUGBK Stadium is always full for all the national team's matches,” said Erick in a statement after attending the draw in person on Friday.

Erick added that the Philippines should not be underestimated by the Garuda Muda squad. On the other hand, the potential of facing Vietnam or Thailand in the knockout stage was welcomed positively by Erick.

"The target in the ASEAN U-23 Championship is to become the champion; we reached the finals in the last edition two years ago. The coach and players also received important preparation before facing the U-23 Asian Cup qualification, which aims to qualify for the main round and replicate the achievement of reaching the semifinals in the U-23 Asian Cup 2024 in Qatar," said Erick.

Vanenburg agrees with Erick. He believes that the ASEAN Championship also serves as a warm-up event for the qualification of the U-23 Asian Cup 2026. Nevertheless, Vanenburg also has the ambition to secure the first trophy for Indonesia.

"This tournament serves as a challenge before we face the U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers in September. It is the best platform for us to develop players and sharpen their mentality," said Vanenburg, who was one of the key players for the Dutch national team when they won the European Cup in 1988.

Indonesia once became the champion of the ASEAN U-23 Championship in 2019. At that time, the Young Garuda was coached by Indra Sjafri. Vietnam became the champion in 2022 and 2023, while Thailand was the champion of the inaugural edition in 2005.

In addition, the U-23 Indonesia team is also targeted to retain the gold medal at the SEA Games. This year, the SEA Games will be held in Thailand.

Meanwhile, on Thursday (29/5/2025), Vanenburg also received news about the results of the draw for the 2026 U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Indonesia, as the host of Group J, will face South Korea, Laos, and Macau.

All matches of the 2026 U-23 Asian Cup qualification will be held at the Gelora Delta Stadium in Sidoarjo, East Java. The tournament will take place from September 1 to September 9, 2025.

To advance to the main round, Indonesia must become the group champion or be one of the four best second-placed teams. The U-23 Asian Cup 2026 will be held in Saudi Arabia.

"We must take advantage of the opportunity to play at home. South Korea is a very strong team. Meanwhile, we are not too familiar with the other teams. Overall, the draw for the U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers is quite good," said Vanenburg.

He added, "To become a champion team, we must be ready to defeat tough teams. That result will be proof that we have reached an elevated level."

In the process of searching for players, Vanenburg has also been touring clubs in Indonesia's Liga 1 for the past month. Young players who have performed well in the BRI Liga 1 2024-2024, such as Muhammad Ferrari, Kadek Arel, Dony Tri Pamungkas, Kakang Rudianto, Ananda Raehan, Arkhan Fikri, Rayhan Hannan, Victor Dethan, Toni Firmansyah, Hokky Caraka, and Arkhan Kaka could be options for Vanenburg.

Players who have represented the Indonesian national team, such as Marselino Ferdinan, Rafael Struick, Ivar Jenner, and Justin Hubner, have also qualified to play for the U-23 team.

Furthermore, Vanenburg can also summon several players who are currently playing outside of Indonesia. They include Meshaal Hamzah (Nakhon Pathom United/Thailand), Dion Markx (NEC Nijmegen/Netherlands), Tim Geypens (Emmen/Netherlands), Welber Jardim (Sao Paulo/Brazil), Ronaldo Kwateh (Mahasarakham/Thailand), and Jens Raven (Dordrecht/Netherlands).

Vanenburg has also expressed the qualities he seeks in players for the U-23 team. "A strong mentality is very important. If they rely solely on talent without hard work, consistency, and discipline in training or matches, then they will not be able to reach their full potential," said Vanenburg.