(Antara Photo/Andika Wahyu)Jakarta. After the Indonesian Super League season wrapped up with the finals between Persib Bandung and Persipura Jayapura on Friday, Indonesian football fans have switched their focus to Merah Putih’s preparation for the upcoming AFF Suzuki Cup, which will begin on Nov. 22.
Indonesia launches its final preparation this week with a warm-up match against Timor Leste at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta today, followed by a match against Syria on Saturday at the same venue as head coach Alfred Riedl will decide his final 22-man player list based on the match results.
Most of the 29 players have already joined the training camp at Pelita Harapan School football field with players from Persib and Persipura given exemption to rest after playing in the ISL finals. But they are expected to join the team today.
“They will join us on the match day. We know it will be hard for them to play in Tuesday’s match as they just played in the ISL finals on Friday. But they will be available for Saturday’s match against Syria,” assistant coach Widodo Cahyono Putro said during a pre-match press conference on Monday.
With very limited time left, Widodo added that they would try to make the best of their time to improve everything they need.
“It will be our final preparation and now we’re focusing on team consolidation. We will make the best of our time and
we hope to be 100 percent ready for the tournament,” he said.
“We have prepared the players well, though we have faced some difficulties.
“Right now, all players have an equal chance to make it into the final cut. We’ll only pick the best and most ready players.
“I hope all players could show their best efforts as they fight for a place in the team. It will be good for the selection process.”
Indonesia will miss several first-team hopefuls in the match such as the injured Hamka Hamzah, Irfan Bachdim and Victor Igbonefo. Widodo hinted that the under-19 star Evan Dimas may make his senior side debut.
With the tournament set to start in two weeks, the coaching staff will have to find a way to keep all players in fresh condition both physically and mentally.
“We know that some players are still exhausted mentally and physically after playing in the ISL playoffs. We’ve expected such a problem and we designed training programs to maintain their motivation and physical condition,” Widodo said.
Meanwhile, Timor Leste, who didn’t qualify for the tournament, will use the match to give its youth players some much- needed experience.
“We’re working hard to build a foundation for the future of our team and we will give a lot of time to youth player to play in this match,” Timor Leste coach Antonio Carlos Vieira said.
No comments:
Post a Comment