Indonesia's players wave to the fans at the end of the Qatar 2023 AFC Asian Cup Group D football match between Vietnam and Indonesia at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha on January 19, 2024. (Photo by Karim Jaafar / AFP)
Doha: Shin Tae-yong was a happy man after Indonesia secured a 1-0 win over Vietnam in their AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 Group D tie on Friday to reignite their hopes of reaching the knockout stage for the first time.
The victory over Vietnam is only Indonesia’s third win at the AFC Asian Cup, with the other two coming against Bahrain (2-1 in 2007) and Qatar (2-1 in 2004) as well as being only the second time they have managed to keep a clean sheet in the continental showpiece.
Asnawi Mangkualam’s first half penalty proved to be the difference in a tightly-fought contest at Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium with Shin not holding back his praise for his young squad.
“Both teams did their best and we showed a good performance,” said the Korean tactician. “We got some luck today and I appreciate the incredible support we received.
“Our team is the youngest among the 24 teams here. Because of that, they lacked a little bit of experience but we will keep improving."
“Maybe Vietnam changed their strategy in the second half, hence the difference in play, but as we were leading, maybe the players wanted to protect the lead.
“That is something that is hard to control because it only comes with experience.”
The hard-earned three points could come in handy in the race for a place in the Round of 16 as the result took Indonesia to third spot, level on points with four-time champions Japan - who they meet in their final group game on Wednesday. Iraq are already assured of finishing top following their 2-0 win against the Japanese.
As for Vietnam, all there’s left to play for is pride when they face Iraq on Wednesday after the defeat left them not only rock-bottom of Group D but also eliminated, having made the quarter-finals in the previous edition.
While head coach Philippe Troussier was encouraged by his side’s second half display, the experienced Frenchman has already identified one key area to improve as the Golden Star Warriors revert their attention towards qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™.
“My first feeling is one of disappointment because we lost the match,” said Troussier. “The result today is clear. At the same time, the spirit and how we played in the second half, maybe we deserved to get a goal."
“We conceded a penalty before half time and it put us in trouble. But I like the reaction of my players. I’m surprised how we played and how we tried.
“First weak point is the physical aspect. As we showed in this tournament, we can only play high intensity for 60 minutes.
“It’s clear we have to improve this aspect because in my system, the players have to run 9-10km every match.”
