T

he Dutch national soccer team, which touched down in Jakarta on Wednesday, was treated to a city tour on Thursday prior to a friendly match with host Indonesia.

Separately, coach Louis van Gaal and his coaching assistants held a training clinic for young players aged between 8 and 14 years old in Senayan, Central Jakarta.

However, the Dutch team was absent from the press conference, which was attended only by Indonesian team coach Jacksen F. Tiago, manager Rudi Maswi and striker Boaz Solossa.

'€œI will score a goal tomorrow,'€ Boaz told the press, hoping soccer fans would throw their support
behind the national squad.

Jacksen said his target was to build a stronger fighting spirit among his players prior to face China in the Pre-Asia Cup qualification.

'€œPeople may think that we will play a defensive game during the match but once we get the ball, we should go out to attack as well,'€ he said.

Van Gaal said he was still unsure if Arjen Robben '€” who was injured during the Bundesliga final '€”
would play.

Friday'€™s match at the Bung Karno Stadium in Senayan will be the first encounter between Indonesia and the Netherlands.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian Students Association (PPI) and the Indonesian Nederland Youth Society (INYS) will be organizing an event at the Indonesian Embassy in The Hague to watch the match.

'€œThe event will allow us to gather together Indonesian and Dutch youths in a relaxed and informal setting,'€ INYS president Rennie Roos said as quoted by Antara.

He said it was just one of several events that had been organized by the society to bring both parties closer, adding that previous events included a poco-poco dance during a Pasar Malam Indonesia (Indonesian night market) held recently.

Tickets for Friday'€™s match are on sale for Rp 50,000 (US$5.1) to Rp 1.75 million for the VVIP section.

The Dutch will wear their classic orange strip, while the Indonesian players will wear white-green shirts.