Vietnam Wins Hat-Trick, Indonesia's Heaviest Heartbreak

JAKARTA, KOMPAS - Fortune cannot be seized, misfortune cannot be avoided. This proverb represents the tragic story of Indonesia in the final of the 2025 ASEAN U-23 Championship. Ambitious to avenge their defeat to Vietnam in the previous edition's final, the "Garuda Muda" team instead succumbed 0-1 at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta, on Tuesday (29/7/2025).

This result dashed a series of sweet hopes for Indonesia. The "Garuda Muda" team was forced to experience the heaviest heartbreak. Having gone through the group stage without suffering a defeat, the bitter loss ultimately had to be felt by Indonesia in the final match.

What's more painful is that this defeat occurred in front of their own fans, just as the "Garuda Muda" were aiming to thwart Vietnam's hat trick in the U-24 championship. The Indonesian football community had to accept that the GBK Stadium, which should have been a celebration venue, was instead turned into a historical monument for Vietnam.

With this, Vietnam becomes the most successful team in the ASEAN U-23 Championship after collecting three titles. Indonesia and Thailand follow closely behind with one title each.

Facing a strong Indonesia in ball possession, the Vietnamese players opted for a passive approach. They did not immediately press when the opposing players attempted to build an attack from the back. Vietnam stacked players in the central area of the field in a 5-4-1 formation while waiting for Indonesia to advance, after which they attempted to apply pressure.

When the ball was successfully seized, the Vietnamese players immediately released a quick long pass to exploit Indonesia's high defensive line. This tactic repeatedly troubled the Indonesian defense commanded by Kadek Arel and Muhammad Ferarri.

In addition to building attacks from below, "Garuda Muda" also attempted to penetrate Vietnam's defense through the left wing occupied by Frengky Missa. Kakang Rudianto played a significant role in this scheme.

When the Vietnamese player moved to the right side of Indonesia's defense, Kakang quickly passed the ball far to Missa on the opposite side. However, this scheme could be easily thwarted by the Vietnamese defender.

One factor that makes it difficult for Indonesian players to create opportunities is the tight defense of Vietnam, which leaves almost no gaps in the spaces between lines. Vietnam also effectively marked striker Jens Raven, making it very challenging for him to turn and face the goal.

To address this, Indonesia's U-23 Team Coach Gerald Vanenburg instructed his players to be bolder in delivering measured long passes aimed at the areas behind the defenders and the goalkeeper. This approach successfully dismantled Vietnam's solid defense on several occasions. Opportunities were created by Rayhan Hannan and Jens, but were still thwarted by the Vietnamese goalkeeper, Tran Trung Kien.

In the second half, Indonesia attempted to play patiently to break through Vietnam's tight defense. However, playing patiently resulted in the Indonesian players not making many progressive passes.

Midfielder Dominikus Dion, for instance, was hesitant to release key passes while Jens was running to find space. Instead, he returned the ball to Ferarri at the back. Observing his player not rushing to deliver a progressive pass at the right moment, Vanenburg appeared frustrated and held his head.

From the touchline, he shouted for them to be more daring in releasing progressive passes.

The final match was also marked by actions of mutual fouling from both teams. The Indonesian players were somewhat provoked by several hard fouls from Vietnam. The supporters present in the stadium consistently booed the Vietnamese players who were caught committing hard fouls or delaying the game.

Until the match ended, Indonesia failed to score an equalizing goal. The substitutions, including the introduction of Arkhan Fikri and Achmad Maulana, which were hoped to change the final outcome this time, did not yield positive results.

No matter how hard Jens and his teammates tried to score an equalizer, Indonesia's efforts were thwarted by Vietnam's solid wall.

The failure to break Vietnam's dominance should not be lamented by "Garuda Muda" for too long. After the AFF U-23 Championship, a greater challenge awaits, namely the qualification for the U-23 Asian Cup 2026. It is in that tournament that Indonesia must redeem this failure.