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RI fare depends on 3 matches after losing to Scotland, Brazil
Loud and proud: Indonesian players, officials and supporters sing the national song “Bagimu Negeri” (For You My Country) before playing against defending champions Brazil in the 2018 Homeless World Cup street soccer tournament in Mexico City on Thursday
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oud and proud: Indonesian players, officials and supporters sing the national song “Bagimu Negeri” (For You My Country) before playing against defending champions Brazil in the 2018 Homeless World Cup street soccer tournament in Mexico City on Thursday. Brazil won 5-0.(JP/Arya Dipa)
After suffering back-to-back losses to Scotland and defending champions Brazil, the Indonesian national street soccer squad will have to win its remaining three matches in Group B to stay in the 2018 Homeless World Cup tournament.
After finishing second in the previous group F stage, Indonesia is in group B with Brazil, South Africa, Norway, Zimbabwe and Scotland.
On Thursday, however, Indonesia experienced a rough day for losing 1-0 in a penalty shootout, following a 5-5 score in regular time, against Scotland in the first match on Thursday. In the second match, which took place on the same day, Indonesia succumbed to defending champion Brazil.
Coach Aulia Rahman said his players had trouble following his instructions when they faced stronger teams.
“I think they were really under pressure on the pitch,” said Aulia in a post-match interview at Zocalo Capitalino in Mexico City.
Aulia believed that the red-and-white squad could have clinched a victory in the Scotland match if the players had been calmers. The plan to collect three points was ruined, but the team managed to collect one point from losing the shootout.
In street soccer, a shootout winner gets two points while the loser earns one point.
Indonesia took an early 2-0 lead in the first five minutes that was delivered by Rizal Ferdian Somawijaya and Yandi Abdul Rajab. Scotland found a loophole in Indonesia’s defense, which made the score 2-1 by end of the first half.
In the second half, Scotland made an equalizer in the eighth minute, forcing Indonesia to step up its game. Under pressure, Indonesia could not do much when Scotland bombarded its net with goals, giving the eventual winner a 5-4 lead in the 13th minute.
Indonesia’s captain, Dego Z. Arifin, made an in-time save as he scored an equalizer to force the shootout.
In the shootout, however, Indonesia failed to score any goals, while Scotland made one.
The loss hit the Indonesian squad hard, especially for those who failed to score during the shootout.
“The key [to succeed] is believing our strategy. Every player has his own role. They have to be ready for a rotation [during the match],” Aulia said.
In the second match against Brazil, the most successful team in the cup with three titles, Indonesia was overpowered by the opponent’s advanced footwork.
In the first half of the match, Indonesia was able to hold off Brazil’s domination, which only scored one goal. However, in the second half, the Indonesians found trouble in keeping themselves together, even despite the nice weather. In the previous group stage on Wednesday, Indonesia had to brave 4 degrees Celsius weather and rain to win matches.
Instead of catching up, Indonesia conceded more goals, giving the favorite team a 5-0 victory.
Preparing for the remaining three matches, captain Dego said he had motivated his teammates to play better.
“I think victories aren’t always about winning matches, but also admitting our mistakes and committing to learning our lessons.”
In the leaderboards, Brazil is on top with five points from two wins in the group stage, followed by South Africa with four points, Norway and Zimbabwe with three points each, Scotland with two points and Indonesia with one point.
