Patrick Kluivert Fortunate as Indonesia's Squad Strengthens

March 28, 2025 | 07:35 am

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian football observer, Mohammad Kusnaeni, assessed that the Indonesian national team has started to find the right line-up and strategy for the remaining two 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The squad's depth makes it easier for coach Patrick Kluivert to put his tactics into practice. "One thing that also played a crucial role in this victory is the squad's depth. Kluivert is fortunate to have players of relatively even quality," he said in Jakarta on Wednesday, March 26, 2025.

Indonesia defeated Bahrain in a continued match of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers Group C Asia Zone at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium on Tuesday, March 25, 2025. The Garuda squad won 1-0 thanks to a solitary goal from Ole Romeny.

According to Kusnaeni, Patrick Kluivert should be able to maintain the same playing style and formation when facing Bahrain for the remaining two matches in the Asian zone qualifiers in June. The Dutch coach also doesn't need to worry about the squad's depth if there are players who can't play. For example, the presence of Rizky Ridho and Justin Hubner can compensate for Mees Hilgers' absence. Nathan Tjoe-A-On and Ricky Kambuaya can also cover for Joey Pelupessy. "They also performed impressively," he said.

In the front line, Ole Romeny, Ragnar Oratmangoen, and Marselino Ferdinan have substitutes whose level is not much different. Eliano Reijnders, Rafael Struick, Egy Maulana Vikri, and Ramadhan Sananta can already fit into Kluivert's game plan. "Kluivert must use the national team's performance this time as a benchmark. Use it as capital to develop better team performance in the future," said Kusnaeni.

Next, Indonesia will host China on June 5, 2025. The players are optimistic about beating China in the upcoming home match. Kevin Diks, who played for 74 minutes against Australia, has a new target after winning against Bahrain in the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. "The next match is in June against China. Let's win again," he said.

Kevin is pleased that Indonesia has finally regained its victory in the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The Garuda squad's first victory came against Saudi Arabia in the same stadium last November. At that time, Diks was absent due to injury.

This is Kevin's first match that ended in victory after two previous matches where he had to swallow bitter defeats. In those games, Indonesia was defeated by Japan 0-4 and Australia 1-5 when it failed to execute a penalty at the beginning of the match. "Finally, we won in this match. I'm very happy to get three points today," said the Copenhagen player who will join Borussia Moenchengladbach next season.

Editor's Choice: 2026 World Cup Qualifiers: Branko Ivankovic Sees Indonesia vs China as Key Match

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