"U.23 Indonesia wants to win all matches"
At the moment, U.23 Indonesia is actively preparing for the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 tournament in Jakarta. Before the regional tournament, coach Gerald Vanenburg clearly showed his determination to win with his players: "Our goal is to win all matches. I am never satisfied with second place, so neither is U.23 Indonesia. I want to win. This is the spirit we need."
The Dutch captain's ambition is not only limited to the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 tournament, but also aims for victories in the 2026 Asian U.23 qualifiers and a gold medal at the 33rd SEA Games. "I never go to a tournament and think we will lose. So, Indonesia U.23 has 3 tournaments and we try to win all fronts. I think that is completely normal. Of course, winning tournaments is not always possible, but we will try our best to achieve the set goal," coach Gerald Vanenburg emphasized.
Striker Hokky Caraka (9) of U.23 Indonesia in a match against
Dinh Xuan Tien
PHOTO: DOAN NHAT
Experienced squad, wants to "take revenge" against U.23 Vietnam
In the list of 25 players of U.23 Indonesia, the notable presence is Jens Raven, a 1.89 m tall naturalized striker of Dutch origin, currently playing for Dordrecht Club (Netherlands). Although there were doubts about his ability to integrate, Raven was eventually retained, showing great expectations from coach Vanenburg. The presence of Jens Raven alongside Hokky Caraka is considered a formidable double spearhead. With a modern playing style and good physique, Raven promises to be an unknown factor in the aerial battles and high ball situations created by the team from the archipelago country.
The U.23 Indonesia squad participating in this tournament has many experienced names, such as Muhammad Ferarri, Kadek Arel, Dony Pamungkas, Arkhan Fikri, all of whom have played for the national team and participated in the AFF Cup 2024.
At the most recent U.23 Southeast Asian tournament (2023), U.23 Indonesia lost to U.23 Vietnam in the final match after a dramatic penalty shootout. That defeat further fueled the determination of the archipelago team in this year's tournament, especially when they played at home. U.23 Vietnam is the champion of two consecutive U.23 Southeast Asian tournaments in 2022 and 2023. Therefore, any opponent in the region will want to win and dethrone coach Kim Sang-sik and his team.
U.23 Indonesia is in Group A with Malaysia, Philippines and Brunei. U.23 Vietnam is in Group B with Cambodia and Laos. Group C has U.23 Thailand, Myanmar and Timor Leste. In case they pass the group stage together, the scenario of U.23 Vietnam and U.23 Indonesia facing each other in the semi-finals, or further, the final, is very likely to happen.
U.23 Indonesia will play the opening match of the U.23 Southeast Asian tournament against Brunei at 8:00 p.m. on July 15.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hlv-u23-indonesia-muon-soan-ngoi-viet-nam-o-giai-dong-nam-a-185250713160503542.htm
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