The Urgency of Finding Arkhan Fikri's Replacement in the Indonesian Squad

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Arkhan Fikri is confirmed to be absent from strengthening Indonesia in the semifinals of the ASEAN U-23 Championship against Thailand. The midfielder from Arema FC has not recovered from the injury he sustained while playing against the Philippines. Indonesia's coach Gerald Vanenburg must brainstorm to find a suitable replacement for Arkhan. Without him, Indonesia's midfield loses a key playmaker.

The "Garuda Muda" team must face Thailand again in the semifinals of the ASEAN U-23 Championship. In the previous edition of the championship, both teams had met, resulting in a victory for Indonesia, 3-1. Playing in front of their home supporters, the Indonesian players are motivated to replicate a similar achievement.

However, Indonesia is confirmed to play without Arkhan, who is the main playmaker. This certainty was conveyed by the Manager of the U-24 Indonesian Football Team, Ahmed Zaki Iskandar, after the final group match against Malaysia.

Previously, Arkhan was still strengthening the team during the match against the Philippines in the second group qualifying match. After halftime, Arkhan sustained an injury and had to be substituted in the second half.

Arkhan is still unable to play as Indonesia faces Malaysia in the decisive match for qualification to the knockout stage. Without Arkhan, Indonesia's midfield struggles to develop. In the match against the Philippines, Indonesia took 17 shots, with seven of them on target.

Their shooting numbers dropped drastically against Malaysia, with Indonesia only managing three shots on target out of 11 attempts.

Undoubtedly, Vanenburg feels a great loss for Arkhan. "I think today's match (against Malaysia) is difficult. They play tightly and defensively. Then, today, we lost a player like Arkhan Fikri. In fact, he is capable of playing freely in the spaces between lines," said Vanenburg.

Arkhan is the metronome of Indonesia's midfield. The Arema FC midfielder possesses the ability to build attacks. Without Arkhan, the "Garuda Muda" midfielders tend to rush in their offensive plays. This situation is highly unlikely to occur if Arkhan is on the field. He always knows the right moment to release a pass or to hold the ball first.

I'm happy with his (Robi's) presence. If his throw-ins are considered an additional weapon, we were fortunate to score from them. - Gerald Vanenburg

Ahead of facing Thailand in the semifinals, Vanenburg must think critically to determine which players can fill Arkhan's role. From the list of 23 definitive players, Indonesia lacks sufficient depth in the central midfield position. There are at least three players who have the potential to replace Arkhan, namely Toni Firmansyah, Rayhan Hanan, and Robi Darwis.

When Arkhan was absent during the match against Malaysia, Vanenburg attempted to position Rayhan as Arkhan's replacement. Rayhan's original position is as an attacking midfielder, but he has often been placed as a right winger by Vanenburg in this tournament. As a result, Rayhan has struggled to develop. There was not much he could do to break through Malaysia's defense.

Thus, Vanenburg could attempt to assign Arkhan's role to Robi. The midfielder from Persib Bandung is primarily tasked with playing as a defensive midfielder. However, Robi has statistical records that make him worthy of replacing Arkhan.

Throughout the group stage, Robi recorded nine key passes. This number of passes even surpassed Arkhan by five key passes. Meanwhile, Rayhan was only able to make three key passes throughout the tournament. Toni, who more frequently played in front of the center-back, also had a similarly poor number of key passes, with only two.

In addition to being a defensive midfielder, throughout his career, Robi has also been able to play slightly further forward in the central midfield position, which is occupied by Arkhan. If Robi plays a bit further forward, the defensive midfielder position will belong to Toni.

The role of a defensive midfielder has been carried out by the Persebaya Surabaya player since the beginning of the tournament. Toni's strong presence in one-on-one duels assists the central defensive duo, Kadek Arel and Kakang Rudianto, in maintaining the defense.

Robi deserves to be put forward as Arkhan's replacement because Indonesia needs a player who can deliver key passes in a match as crucial as the semifinals.

Moreover, Indonesia will face Thailand, which has a solid defense and has not conceded any goals in the group stage. The creativity and imagination of Robi's play are needed by Indonesia to end the goal drought.

"I am pleased with his presence (Robi). If his throw-ins are considered an additional weapon, then fine, we are fortunate to be able to score goals through that. However, the most important thing is that he is one of our key players. That is what matters for the team," said Vanenburg.