Patrick Kluivert is Confident that Indonesia is Capable of Overthrowing China

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The confidence of the Indonesian national team coach Patrick Kluivert is at its peak as his team prepares to face China at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium in Jakarta on Thursday (5/6/2025) at 20:45 WIB. Three points will secure the "Garuda" squad's path to at least continue their struggle into the fourth round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Kluivert's confidence in defeating China and simultaneously recording his second victory with Indonesia is based on the performance of his players during the preparation period in Bali and Jakarta over the past two weeks. The Dutch tactician believes that his players are capable of perfectly executing every detail of the training regimen devised by him and the other coaching staff.

"The execution of players during training is fantastic. It is very important for them to understand what to do in various situations, such as ball possession, off the ball, and two transition conditions," said Kluivert at a press conference ahead of the match at SUGBK, Wednesday (4/6/2025) evening.

"Furthermore, the most important thing is that the players can execute all the training schemes accurately in the match. I hope that when we meet again tomorrow after the match, I can fulfill my words," said Kluivert, who previously played for Ajax Amsterdam and Barcelona.

According to Kluivert, Indonesian players have also prepared well in anticipating some of China's advantages. This includes high-energy play, pressing in tight zones, and transitions.

"We must focus 100 percent because China is a good team. We are preparing ourselves as best as possible because we do not underestimate any team," he stated.

In addition, Kluivert also did not have a problem with the absence of his two mainstay forwards, Marselino Ferdinan and Ragnar Oratmangoen.

Marselino was unable to play in the match against the "Dragon Team" due to an accumulation of yellow cards; however, he participated in a one-hour training session during the official practice ahead of the match on Wednesday evening. Meanwhile, Ragmar did not join the training camp this month as he is currently suffering from an injury.

"Marselino is an outstanding player. However, I am pleased with the substitutes currently in the team," said Patrick.

To replace Marselino's role as an attacking midfielder, Patrick has three player options, namely Stefano Lilipaly, Beckham Putra, and Ricky Kambuaya. Additionally, Egy Maulana Vikri and Yakob Sayuri can fill the wing forward position that Marselino played in the match against Bahrain last March.

In the goalkeeper position, the mainstay of the Indonesian national team, Maarten Paes, is also unable to play due to similar issues as Marselino. This situation will lead Emil Audero to make his debut wearing the Garuda jersey.

"I am very positive ahead of tomorrow's match (Thursday), the team also has an extraordinary atmosphere. I hope that this situation can also be realized in the game, so that we can achieve a positive result in accordance with our wishes," said Emil, who was born in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara.

In addition to experiencing a performance in front of more than 70,000 supporters at SUGBK, Emil is also proud to be partaking in a historic moment for his extended family. He revealed that his relatives in Lombok will watch his performance on television, and some of his family members will also come directly to the stadium.

"I am very excited and cannot wait to participate in this very important match (with the Indonesian national team)," said Emil, who is a goalkeeper for Palermo.

Victory over China will ensure Indonesia's advancement to the fourth round, which will take place next October. If Bahrain can win the remaining two games and Indonesia only secures three points this month, they still cannot displace Indonesia's position due to their inferior head-to-head record in Group C of the third round.

On the other hand, Indonesia still has the opportunity to accompany Japan to qualify directly for the 2026 World Cup. To achieve this, Indonesia must defeat China and Japan, while hoping that Australia only earns one point and that Saudi Arabia fails to win in two matches this June.

Meanwhile, China’s coach Branko Ivankovic stated that the five teams in Group C still have an equal chance to accompany Japan in advancing to the final round of the 2026 World Cup. He continued that this situation has led China to carry a mission to secure one point in Jakarta.

"This is a super important match for both teams. We will execute the game as we have prepared to achieve a positive result," said Ivankovic.

Furthermore, Ivankovic has also prepared his team's mentality to face the pressure from fanatical Indonesian supporters.

"I ask the players to turn that pressure into motivation. We are not affected by the condition of the Indonesian team, such as the presence of new players, because we are focused on ourselves to achieve our goals," said the Croatian tactician.

During the official training session, China showcased a different training regimen compared to Indonesia and the four other teams that had already played at SUGBK. This difference was evident in the mixed warm-up session attended by 25 players.

This is because, for the other five teams in Group C, the goalkeepers always undergo separate training guided by the goalkeeper coach. After warming up, China also immediately implemented an 11 versus 11 game simulation training using half of the field.

While his 22 teammates were playing internal matches, Wang Dalei, China's main goalkeeper and captain, was doing separate shoot-stopping drills with goalkeeping coach Igor Panadic.

This condition contrasts with the official training menu of Indonesia. Five goalkeepers are undergoing intensive training with two goalkeeper coaches, namely Sjoerd Woudenberg and Damian van Rensburg. The five goalkeepers are Emil, Maarten, Ernando Ari, Nadeo Argawinata, and Reza Arya.

Meanwhile, the 24 outfield players of the Garuda squad only underwent warm-ups and one-touch quick passing exercises in the open session which lasted for the first 15 minutes.