Jakarta – Indonesia U-23 head coach Gerald Vanenburg has said that his team is eagerly awaiting its showdown with Vietnam in the ASEAN U-23 Mandiri Cup™ 2025 final on Tuesday as the hosts attempt to end the reign of the back-to-back defending champions in the region’s leading youth tournament.
Vietnam have not been beaten in 12 matches in the competition, which is a showcase for the rising stars of ASEAN football, since they lost 1-0 to Indonesia in the 2019 ASEAN U-23 Championship semi-finals, a run that includes victory over the Indonesians in the 2023 final in Rayong, Thailand.
Vanenburg’s side have come through a series of tough fixtures during their run to the Mandiri Cup™ 2025 final, drawing 0-0 with arch-rivals Malaysia in the group stage and edging former winners Thailand in a penalty shoot-out in the semi-finals. However, the Dutchman said that he had always seen Vietnam as the main obstacles to glory for the Garuda Muda.
“This is the match that we have been waiting for,” said the 61-year-old on the eve of the match at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium
“We had targeted it from our first game in the tournament, and so we are so ready for this game.”
The match comes four days after Indonesia’s draining semi-final victory against the Thais, which required penalties to decide the outcome after the teams were deadlocked 1-1 after 120 minutes.
Vanenburg, however, insists that fatigue will not be an issue for his side, who have played one game more than the Vietnamese on their run to the final, even if the match also goes to a penalty shoot-out.
“The condition of our players is good. They are fit and have been ready since the start of the tournament to prepare for this kind of situation,” he said.
“Of course, we want to win the game in 90 minutes, but if we have to go to penalties, it’s all about mentality and luck.
“We are preparing to win the game in normal time, but if it ends up in penalty kicks, we are ready and our players will win it.”
Vietnam have won all three of their matches during their run to the final, beating Laos 3-0 and Cambodia 2-1 in the group stage, before overcoming the Philippines 2-1 in the semi-finals.
Head coach Kim Sang-sik is confident that his team can maintain their excellent record in the competition.
“Playing in the final is about mentality and we are ready to play Indonesia in the final and we hope that we can beat them,” said the 48-year-old Korean, who also led Vietnam’s senior team to success in last year’s ASEAN Championship.
“We had only had three days to recover after our semi-final win against the Philippines, which is a bit too tight. However, we have prepared our team well so it should not be a big problem for us.”
Indonesia are the first hosts to play in an ASEAN U-23 Championship final since Thailand beat Singapore 3-0 in Bangkok to win the inaugural tournament in 2005.
The Mandiri Cup™ 2025 final will kick-off at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium at 8.00pm local time on Tuesday, 29 July.
For a list of domestic television networks and streaming platforms that will be broadcast the game LIVE, please visit this page.
Match tickets are available exclusively through the “Livin’ by Mandiri” app. For more information on ticket sales, please visit this page.
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