PSM Makassar Eliminated, Real Proof that the Indonesian League is Already Behind in ASEAN

HANOI, WEDNESDAY — As one by one Southeast Asian clubs achieve sweet successes in international club competitions, representatives from the Indonesian League continue to struggle to compete for the best achievements. Most recently, PSM Makassar was eliminated in the semifinals of the ASEAN Club Championship 2024-2025 by the Vietnamese representative, Cong An Ha Noi (CAHN).

In the second semifinal match at the CAHN headquarters, Hang Day Stadium, on Wednesday (30/4/2025) evening, the team nicknamed "Juku Eja" fell 0-2. Goals from two CAHN defenders, Hugo Gomes (in the 48th minute) and Bui Hoang Viet Anh (in the 60th minute), secured their team's place in the final with an aggregate victory of 2-1.

The failure of PSM to maintain the aggregate advantage in the first leg at the Gelora BJ Habibie Stadium, Parepare, South Sulawesi, on April 2, ensured that there would be no representatives from Indonesia in the international championship title match. Previously, Madura United also lost with an aggregate score of 3-6 to the Cambodian team, Svay Rieng, in the semifinals of the 2024-2025 Asian Challenge League.

In addition to Madura and PSM, the champion of Liga 1 Indonesia 2023-2024, Persib Bandung, was unable to compete in the second qualifying round of the AFC Champions League. Persib was eliminated in the early stages, finishing in fourth place. "Maung Bandung" struggled to compete against Lion City Sailors (Singapore), Port FC (Thailand), and Zhejiang (China).

Meanwhile, four ASEAN leagues have sent their teams to the pinnacle of international competition. Singapore, represented by Lion City Sailors, reached the final of the AFC Champions League Two, while Svay Rieng affirmed the improved quality of the Cambodian League.

CAHN represents the Vietnamese club to face one of the Thai League teams, Buriram or BG Pathum. The second match of the Thai derby will take place on May 7. In the first game, Buriram defeated BG Pathum 3-1.

For three editions, Indonesia has once again failed to send a representative to the final stage. PSM followed in the footsteps of Petrokimia Putra Gresik, which managed to compete until the semifinal phase. Petrokimia's record was established in the inaugural season of the ASEAN Club Championship in 2003.

The situation confirms that Liga 1 Indonesia ranks 25th in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) competition rankings. In the ASEAN region, Liga 1 Indonesia is in sixth place. Indonesia falls behind the competitions of Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Cambodia.

The certainty of advancing to the final has allowed CAHN to record a 100 percent victory at home in this season's ASEAN Championship. Buriram, Lion City, and the Indonesian duo, Borneo FC and PSM, returned empty-handed from Hanoi.

CAHN's ambition to maintain a series of positive results at home was evident from their attacking focus right from the kickoff. Deploying an initial formation of 3-4-3, the team coached by Alexandre Polking threatened PSM's goal just five minutes into the match.

Forward CAHN, Alan Grafite, became the first player to test PSM goalkeeper, Reza Arya Pratama. Reza's performance deserves appreciation once again due to his double save in the 19th minute.

He deflected a shot from CAHN's midfielder and captain, Nguyen Quang Hai, and then saved a shot from Vitao who capitalized on the rebound. In the first 10 minutes, CAHN was very dominant in ball possession, recording 93 percent control of the ball.

PSM was only able to pose a threat to CAHN's goal in the 43rd minute. The foreign midfielder from Japan, Daisuke Sakai, took a long-range shot that was blocked by Gomes.

Although they were able to withstand the onslaught of CAHN in the first half, causing the home team to adopt a slow-paced game, Yuran Fernandes and his teammates failed to maintain a solid defense. As a result, PSM conceded two goals from corner kick schemes in the second half.

Gomes and Bui Hoang maximized the lapses of PSM players in the second ball duels. This situation opened up opportunities for CAHN players to take precise shots that could not be blocked by Reza.

PSM only began to attack after falling behind by two goals. PSM's ball possession, which was only 25 percent in the first half, slightly increased to 34 percent after the final whistle of the second half.

The Juku Eja squad also created three additional opportunities, one of which was on target. A header from substitute winger, Abdul Rahman, in the 71st minute was deflected over the crossbar by the naturalized goalkeeper of the Vietnam national team, Filip Nguyen.

In terms of gameplay, PSM is indeed inferior compared to CAHN. While Juku Eja only produced four shots, CAHN created 24 shots, eight of which were on target.

On the other hand, the players of PSM also made another fundamental mistake when attempting to play more offensively. Not only was the passing accuracy very low at 62 percent—compared to CAHN's 82 percent accuracy—but PSM's long throw strategy also did not run smoothly.

Daffa Salman and M Mufli are players who failed to execute a long throw-in towards the CAHN penalty box. This is because their feet entered the playing area while throwing the ball.