2022 AFF Cup, Alexandre Polking Mentions Shin Tae-Yong Possess Dangerous Players
Editor
29 December 2022 10:04 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia vs Thailand national football team in Group A of the 2022 AFF Cup is going to be the third match for the two teams. The match is going to be held at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium (SUGBK), Senayan, Jakarta, Thursday, December 29 2022, starting at 16:30 WIB (Indonesian Western TIme) with a live broadcast on RCTI.
The coach of the Thai national team, Alexandre Polking, said that he did not want to underestimate the Indonesian national team even after acknowledging their strength. According to him, some players under Shin Tae-Yong are dangerous and must be cautious.
Polking previously managed to guide Thailand to win the AFF Cup in 2020, securing their sixth title for the team nicknamed The War Elephant (1996, 2000, 2002, 2014, 2016 and 2020).
In the 2020 AFF Cup which is going to take place in Singapore from late 2021 to early 2022, Thailand secured its sixth title after defeating Indonesia in the final with a score of 6-2 on aggregate. Winning the first match 4-0, and ending with a draw 2-2.
After that, the Thai national team under Polking was also able to beat Indonesia with a score of 1-0 in the semifinals of the 2021 SEA Games which were held last May.
With his knowledge of the Indonesian national team under Shin Tae-Yong, Polking mentioned several players in the Indonesian team that he already knows well.
"Most of the players in the Indonesian team are the same as during the last AFF Cup, several of them also played in the 2021 SEA Games, thus we know the majority of them," said Polking in a press conference ahead of the match at SUGBK, Senayan, Jakarta, Wednesday, December 28, 2022.
"They (Indonesia) are a young team filled with passion. They have two central defenders with a striking instinct, and Jordi Amat, who is good at handling the ball."
"Then, there is Marselino Ferdinan, who is probably one of the best young players. Witan Sulaeman is good on the wing-back and Egy Maulana Vikri on the other. They are very organized," he said.
Polking, who already knows most of the Indonesian national team players, is again leading his team to win their third victory in the preliminary round of Group A for the 2022 AFF Cup.
Thailand currently leads Group A standings with six points, equal to Indonesia but superior on goal difference. If the Thai team manage to win the third match, Polking's team would ensure to qualify for the semifinals.
The Brazilian coach emphasized that Thailand has the ambition to win its seventh title at this Southeast Asian level championship. A victory in the current AFF Cup could strengthen their position as the most successful national team in the event. Second place is still held by the Singapore team with 4 time wins in the cup final, followed by Vietnam with 2 wins.
To achieve his ambition, according to Polking, three countries need to be watched out for as potential champions. They are Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia. The first two teams are in Group B.
"Our ambition is very clear, to continue to win this tournament. We have a history in this competition, Thailand has won six times and desires to win the seventh title," he said.
"That's our ambition. We have good players to make it happen. And that's why we will try again," he said.
Thailand has brought in two wins without conceding in the previous two matches against Brunei Darussalam (5-0) and the Philippines (4-0).
With the promising performance of the two teams in their previous game, the match between Indonesia and Thailand is going to be interesting to look forward to. A battle of tactics between Shin Tae-Yong against Alexandre Polking clashing the two national teams in the Group A match of the 2022 AFF Cup.
MUH. NURHENDRA SAPUTRA | IMAJI LASAHIDO (INTERN)
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