Get rid of the 20 year curse of Indonesia vs Vietnam National Team

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The Indonesian National Team endured the curse of never winning for 20 years at the Vietnam headquarters. The team coached by Coach Shin Tae-yong tried to get rid of the curse at My Dinh Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam, in the continuation of the second round 2026 World Cup qualification, Tuesday (26/3/2024) at 19.00 WIB. The same goes for Vietnam Coach Philippe Troussier, who is also trying to escape the curse.

The “Garuda” team and victory are never matched in My Dinh. At Vietnam’s most magnificent stadium, Indonesia was last able to win in the 2004 AFF Cup. At that time, the quality of Indonesia and Vietnam’s football was not the same as it is today. The landslide 3-0 win at My Dinh is proof of that.

Also read: Indonesia vs Vietnam: Ragnar Oratmangoen and Thom Haye are certain to be able to play

Afterwards, Vietnam emerged as one of Indonesia’s toughest rivals in the Southeast Asian region. The My Dinh Stadium in the heart of Hanoi is no longer welcoming for Indonesia. The best result Indonesia could achieve at My Dinh was a 2-2 draw in the 2016 AFF Cup. Indonesia struggled to secure that draw after thwarting Vietnam’s “remontada” attempt.

Indonesia’s coach, Shin Tae-yong, admits that Vietnam is not an easy opponent to beat in their home turf. Shin also has never led any Indonesian national team of all age groups to victory in Vietnam. Since handling Indonesia in 2020, Shin has faced Vietnam twice in their home turf, but it resulted in defeat.

Repeatedly failing to conquer Vietnam in front of their supporters, Shin targets their first victory. With three matches left in Group F, Indonesia’s chances of advancing to the third round will increase if they are able to embarrass Vietnam. This will be Indonesia’s last away match in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The other two matches will be played at Indonesia’s home ground, facing Iraq and the Philippines in June.

“The match tomorrow can be considered an important game. We came here (Vietnam) to win. Perhaps many Indonesian national team players have minimal experience. However, I believe they have the desire and ability to display their best performance,” said Shin in a press conference session ahead of the match on Monday (25/3/2024).”

Also read: Garuda’s Claws Are Still Not Sharp

Ahead of the crucial match, Indonesia suffered a heavy blow with the condition of five players being hit by a fever. They are Nadeo Argawinata, Muhammad Riyandi, Sandy Walsh, Ivar Jenner, and Rafael Struick. However, Struick is reported to have recovered and will join the team in Vietnam a day before the match.

In midfield, Indonesia has received additional new energy with the certainty that Thom Haye can play. Thom and Ragnar Oratmangoen are the two newest naturalized players in Indonesia. Previously, Indonesia had already strengthened two naturalized players, Jay Idzes and Nathan Tjoe-A-On.

The presence of Thom will greatly help amidst Jenner’s doubtful performance. Thom has the same ability as Jenner to fill the defensive midfielder position, but the difference is that Thom has much better passing accuracy. The accurate passes of SC Heerenveen players in the top division of the Dutch league are useful for eliminating Vietnam’s high defense lines.

As for Ragnar, he is more explosive with his habit of launching attacks from the left wing. Ragnar is expected to be a solution to the weakness of Indonesia’s front line, which has never scored more than one goal in a match since October 2023.

Tomorrow’s match can be considered as an important game. We came here (Vietnam) to win. Perhaps many players in the Indonesian national team have minimal experience. However, I believe they have the desire and ability to show their best performance.

“I am very happy and proud to be here. I hope to make my debut with the national team in Vietnam. God willing, it can be a beautiful memory for me,” said Ragnar.

Also read: Egy Maulana, Adi Satryo, and Riyandi, Kompas League Alumni Behind the National Team’s Victory

Troussier’s Inferiority

Throughout his coaching career, Troussier has one thing that he really doesn’t understand about Indonesia. Since 2004, Troussier has had three opportunities to meet with Indonesia. However, he has always experienced defeat in those three matches.

Troussier’s first encounter with Indonesia happened in July 2004 during the Asia Cup. The French national coach was then handling the Qatar national team. In the group stage, Troussier faced Indonesia, which was coached by the late Benny Dollo at that time.

Unexpectedly, the Indonesian national team was able to win 2-1 with goals from Budi Sudarsono and Ponaryo Astaman. Meanwhile, Qatar was only able to respond through Magid Mohamed Hassan’s goal towards the end of the match.

Also read: Adaptation Obstacles and Big Threats for the Indonesian National Team in Hanoi

The humiliating defeat even led to Troussier losing his job. Despite Qatar still having two matches left in the group stage. Troussier recounted the moment of dismissal as something surprising and disappointing.

The opportunity for Troussier to seek revenge against Indonesia is present in the 2024 Qatar Asia Cup. Troussier this time replaced Park Hang-seo as Vietnam’s coach. Instead of seeking revenge, Troussier actually suffered another defeat to Indonesia, coached by Shin Tae-yong. Asnawi Mangkualam’s single goal solidified Troussier’s inferiority to Indonesia.

In the third meeting with Indonesia in the second round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Troussier was unable to stop the suffering. Playing in front of Indonesian supporters, Vietnam played well in the first half. However, Indonesia was able to maximize the advantage of being the host through Egy Maulana Vikri’s solitary goal. The match became Troussier’s third defeat from Indonesia.

“Of course, everything won’t be easy. Therefore, we hope to get as much support as possible from the audience starting from the first minute until the end of the match. We are aware of our responsibilities and will do our best,” said Troussier during the press conference session before the match.

Also read: Vietnam’s “Psywar”, Test of the Mentality of Winners of the Indonesian National Team

Troussier is preparing for anticipatory measures against throwing weapons into Indonesia. In the match in Jakarta, a throw from Pratama Arhan started a commotion that caused Vietnam to concede. In addition to throwing weapons, Troussier is also wary of Indonesia’s quick counterattacks.

“We have analyzed and speculated about this matter. There is a possibility that Indonesia will play defensively and aim for a counterattack. Alternatively, they can also appear to be pressing from the start. Whatever their strategy may be, I always ask the players to fight until the end of the match,” said Troussier.