INDONESIANS WON'T TAKE PHILIPPINES LIGHTLY; BUT INDONESIA HAS NEVER WON THE SUZUKI CUP
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 16 Dec 2010
JAKARTA: Indonesia may have claimed a record victory when they last faced the Philippines on home soil in the AFF Suzuki Cup but assistant coach Wolfgang Pikal has insisted that his side will show plenty of respect to their opponents when they meet in the first leg of the semi-finals on Thursday. The match will be telecast over ABS-CBN's Studio 23 at 8:00 p.m.
The Merah Putih crushed the Azkals 13-1 at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium eight years ago for what remains Indonesia's biggest win in international football and the most emphatic victory in AFF Suzuki Cup history.
But the Philippines have since become a much more solid defensive outfit, conceding only one goal so far in this year's competition and earning their reward with their first ever appearance in the last four.
And despite having to play both legs of their semi-finals in an intimidating atmosphere in Jakarta due to the lack of a suitable facility in the Philippines, Pikal says that his team can take nothing for granted against their less fancied opponents.
"We respect the Philippines very much," said the Austrian. "They are a very strong team and up to now, they have only conceded one goal and they have not lost a match.
"They are not the same Philippines team as before when everybody thought that we could easily win against them without much of a struggle.
"But most of our players are fit and we are optimistic that over two legs, we have enough to go through to the final."
Having topped their group with three wins, the Indonesians were given a day off last week before resuming training on Saturday as they sought to find a way to break down the Filipino defensive wall.
Said Pikal: "All of our players were back in time and thankfully we have no injuries so the training has gone very well for us.
"The Philippines are very strong at the back. We know that and we have a strategy although I can't say what we're trying to do. We are having video training sessions with the players to see how we can open up their defence, which will be difficult.
"For Indonesia, the expectation of the fans is very high so of course there is some pressure on us. So hopefully our players can concentrate for 90 minutes and deal with the problems that will come during that time."
INDONESIA NEVER WON THE SUZUKI CUP
Given their abundance of talent and attacking flair, it is a surprise that Indonesia have never won the AFF Suzuki Cup. The country with the largest population in South-East Asia have produced many great players over the years but they have yet to deliver the biggest prize in Asean football to their fanatical supporters.
Indonesia reached the final of the AFF Suzuki Cup on three successive occasions in 2000, 2002 and 2004 only to lose to Thailand twice and then Singapore.
Former coach of Vietnam, Alfred Riedl, will be at the helm of the Indonesians for the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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