Defeating Dewa United's U-16 Team, LKG BRI Indonesia Gains Important Capital Towards Gothia Cup

BOGOR, KOMPAS — The first friendly match of the LKG BRI Indonesia team during the training camp ahead of the 2025 Gothia Cup ended with a positive result. The "Laskar Kera Sakti" defeated the U-16 Dewa United team, 4-1. This result boosts confidence and demonstrates a development in collective performance after training since early May.

LKG BRI Indonesia, consisting mainly of players born in 2010, conducted a friendly match at the Dewa United Training Center in Bogor Regency, West Java, on Wednesday (18/6/2025). The match took place over three periods, each lasting 30 minutes.

In the first half, LKG BRI Indonesia scored two goals through a shot from forward Muhammad Akbar Ramadhan and a penalty execution by attacking midfielder and team captain, Oksal Kristian. The penalty was awarded after a defender from Dewa United brought down Akbar.

The squad coached by Coach Tb Wahyudin Syah had conceded a goal in the second half of the match. However, midfielder Lutfi Helmi added to the number of goals for Laskar Kera Sakti through a kick that utilized the second ball in front of Dewa United's penalty box.

The dominance of LKG BRI Indonesia, playing under drizzling rain and a cool temperature of 24 degrees Celsius, was reinforced by Oksal's second goal in the third round. Although they were able to create several opportunities, LKG BRI Indonesia could not add to their score.

The U-16 Dewa United team, which is projected to participate in the 2025 Elite Pro Academy, produced two accurate shots on target that were each caught once by two goalkeepers from LKG BRI Indonesia, namely Fikri Pratama and Fazil Darvesh.

"I am very pleased with my personal performance by scoring two goals and the team's performance in this match. We have shown good progress after undergoing training during this time," said Oksal after the match.

Wahyu stated that the match against Dewa United serves as a momentum for his players to demonstrate improvements from several shortcomings observed during training sessions and friendly matches over the past month. He hopes that a decisive victory over Dewa United will not lead the LKG BRI Indonesia squad to become complacent.

"The key to this positive result is that we were able to minimize errors on the field. The children played more disciplined and cohesively, both in attacking and defending. My hope is that they can continue to improve this during the training camp and the upcoming matches," said Wahyu.

During the training camp period at the Bromelia Sport Center in Bogor, West Java, from June 16 to 23, the LKG BRI Indonesia squad still has four more friendly matches scheduled to take place on Saturday and Sunday (June 21-22, 2025).

The match against Dewa United became an opportunity for Wahyu and assistant coach Eddy to experiment with players in various positions. The standard formation of 4-1-2-3 was relied upon. However, the arrangement and positions of the players were altered in each half alternately.

In the first half, the goalkeeper position was filled by Fikri. Then, Abdalrahman Yakoub, Abdullah Husain, Dek Mang Pamungkas, and Dimas Anggara formed a quartet in defense. The defensive midfield was occupied by M Hazwan Haidar, with Oksal and Lutfi Helmi playing in front of him. The forward line was filled by Muhamad Fadlan, Akbar, and Rayina Pamungkas.

After the substitution, Fazil took up a position under the crossbar. Husain was shifted to the right wing-back, allowing Dek Mang and Puma Nandhito, who partnered in Persigawa during this season's Liga Kompas U-14 Powered by BRI, to fill the center-back positions. Dimas remained in the left wing-back position.

The central midfielder position is occupied by Milito Sitompul, while the two attacking midfielders are filled by Aldo Julian Ajri and Lutfi. Oksal has been shifted to the right winger position to support Akbar and Rayina in the attacking line.

The lineup in the third round has changed once again. Fikri is relied upon as the main goalkeeper. The quartet of defenders consists of Abdalrahman, Dek Mang, Ariana Baihaqi Aris, and Dimas. Hazwan occupies the central midfield position, accompanied by Aldo and Lutfi. In the front line, a trident is formed by Fadlan, Radhitya Javas Nugraha, and M Fauzan Al Hadar.

During the course of the match, several players also occupied different positions. For instance, Radhitya was briefly returned to his original position as an attacking midfielder, Baihaqi played as a left wing-back, Dimas occupied the central striker position, Fadlan played as a right wing-back, and Hazwan took up the central defender role.

"From the beginning, I emphasized to the players that they must be able to play in at least two positions. The coach does not select players if they are not capable of playing in those positions. Players must also have confidence in their abilities and be ready to play according to the team's needs," said Wahyu.

Oksal stated that he and all the players have no issues occupying different positions compared to when they play at their respective clubs. "We have trained to occupy different positions. Therefore, we have adapted and become accustomed to the new positions," he said.

The coach of the U-16 Dewa United team, Sukardi S Paera, praised the abilities demonstrated by LKG BRI Indonesia. According to him, the Laskar Kera Sakti has shown a fairly positive performance ahead of their battle in the 2025 Gothia Cup.

"The individual abilities, team cohesion, and mentality of the LKG BRI Indonesia players are already commendable. A total of 18 players possess balanced skills. I hope to achieve good results in the upcoming Gothia Cup," said Sukardi.

Nevertheless, he advised that LKG BRI Indonesia address one shortcoming. "The physical aspect still needs improvement. We observed that there were still three players who cramped during the match played over three periods," he stated.

Three players who experienced cramps and had to be substituted were Husain, Abdalrahman, and Dimas. Regarding this input, Wahyu stated that the physical issues would be a subject of evaluation for the coaching staff in order to improve the players' fitness during matches.

This is because LKG BRI Indonesia will play two matches in one day at the Gothia Cup 2025. Each match lasts for 2×30 minutes.