Bahrain coach Dragan Talajic gave a sharp dig at the Indonesian National Team ahead of the clash between the two teams in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium, Tuesday (3/25).
The dig was made by Dragan Talajic in a press conference session before the duel, Monday (3/24). At that time, Talajic hinted at his surprise at the Indonesian National Team which always added new players.
Interestingly, according to Talajic, these new players are naturalized players and not purely Indonesian players.
“I often watch Indonesian matches. Every time I watch I see two or three new players, but from the Netherlands and from England, none from Indonesia.”
“You have millions of people, but most of them come from the Netherlands. But there’s nothing wrong, we respect the Indonesian National Team and we come to win,” said Talajic.
Since the era of coach Shin Tae Yong which continued to the management of Erick Thohir, the naturalization project of the Indonesian National Team has not stopped. Most recently, the Garuda Squad added Dean James, Joey Pelupessy, and goalkeeper Emil Audero to the list of players for the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers in March.
Despite being criticized, these naturalized players actually have quite a positive effect on the Indonesian National Team. In the third round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers, the Red and White Team was able to put up a fight against Australia, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia.
The three teams are known to have a FIFA ranking above Indonesia. Before clashing with these teams, Indonesia was always in an underdog position.
However, with the entry of several naturalized players, Indonesia was able to match Saudi Arabia 1-1, hold Australia 0-0, and match Bahrain 2-2 in the first meeting. Then won 2-0 over Saudi Arabia in the second duel at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium.
Against Bahrain later will be another crucial match for the Indonesian National Team. The team that is now coached by Patrick Kluivert must win and must not lose points in order to maintain their chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
