Former Indonesian National Team coach Shin Tae Yong praised Jay Idzes and his friends after defeating Bahrain in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers for the Asian zone at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium, Jakarta, Tuesday (3/25).
The Indonesian National Team won 1-0 over Bahrain. Indonesia’s only winning goal was scored by striker Ole Romeny in the 24th minute.
“Reaching the World Cup is the highest achievement. How great it is for Indonesia and all the children, because they can watch the World Cup. That’s our goal in doing it,” said Romeny.
Romeny also said that throughout his professional career as a soccer player, this was the first time he had felt an extraordinary atmosphere like the one at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium during Indonesia vs Bahrain.
Shin Tae Yong, who was in Jakarta and watched the Indonesia vs Bahrain match together, admitted that he was impressed by the defensive play of the Garuda team led by the trio Jay Idzes, Rizky Ridho, and Justin Hubner.
“Maybe instead of talking about tactics, we can talk about us conceding a goal. That’s what can be praised,” said Shin Tae Yong.
In addition, Shin Tae Yong believes that the Indonesian National Team’s performance can still be better, especially in terms of finishing.
“But there were some very unfortunate moments, even though we could have taken advantage of the opportunities to score goals. But, because the result was a win, so we must continue to provide support to the players so that they can win again in the future,” said Shin Tae Yongx`.
Although they only won 1-0 over Bahrain, the Indonesian National Team actually dominated the game. There were at least two other golden opportunities that failed to become goals, namely through kicks from Marselino Ferdinan and Eliano Reijnders in the second half.
The victory over Bahrain also reopened the opportunity for the Indonesian National Team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup. Indonesia currently sits in fourth place in the temporary standings of Group C of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers with a collection of nine points, one point behind Saudi Arabia in third place.
