Surakarta: Indonesia and the Philippines will be hunting for a coveted spot in the semi-finals of the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup™ 2024 when they come up against each other at Manahan Stadium on Saturday.
Team Garuda currently find themselves in second place in Group B with four points, while the Filipinos are hot on their heels being just a point behind.
Indonesia will be fresh after having a rest during the previous matchday having returned from a 1-0 defeat in Vietnam last weekend. Prior to that, Indonesia saw off a stern Myanmar challenge with only an own goal the difference in the end while dropping points in an exciting 3-3 affair against since eliminated Laos.
That point could prove to be crucial now in an extremely tight Group B with Vietnam and Myanmar also in the hunt as the race for knockout stage qualification is set to go down to the wire.
Shin Tae-yong will welcome the return of their young sensation Marselino Ferdinan, who was sent off in the game versus Laos and will be back in the fold after serving his suspension.
Indonesian fans will hope that their forwards can finally start scoring goals this time, with all of their goals coming from centre-backs so far, which means that the likes of Rafael Struick and Hokky Caraka will need to shoulder more responsibilities if Indonesia are to make it through to the next round.
On the other hand, the Philippines haven’t had such problems with three different goalscorers in three matches for them so far. Bjorn Martin Kristensen converted a second half penalty to help them grab a point from their opening game against Myanmar.
Sandro Reyes was the one who then stepped up against Laos with a second-half strike as the match once again ended 1-1. However, in their previous match against Vietnam it was the Philippines who took the lead courtesy of a fine effort from Jarvey Gayoso but once again they would have to be satisfied with a point as Vietnam equalised right at the death.
Albert Capellas’ side will hope for a change of fortunes as they now need a win to go through to the semi-finals of the tournament for the first time since 2018.
This will be the 10th meeting between these teams in ASEAN Championship history, with Indonesia having won all but one game, including a 13-1 win in 2002 which remains the biggest margin of win in the tournament’s history.
However, the Philippines can draw inspiration from their past, their only win against Indonesia being an iconic victory when they beat them 4-0 in the 2014 edition with the likes of Phil Younghusband, Manny Ott and Martin Steuble all on target that day.
Indonesia vs Philippines
Venue: Manahan Stadium, Surakarta
Kick-off: 21 December, 8:00 PM (Local Time)
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