Indonesia's prospects dim in Asian Cup c'ship<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (AFP): Indonesia's prospects of advancing beyond the
\nfirst round of the Asian Cup are slim, a former national soccer
\ncoach told AFP Saturday.<\/p>\n
\"Indonesia is now in the 'hell' group, and it would be very
\ndifficult for Indonesia to score a victory in this group,\" Parlin
\nSiagian, assistant coach for the 1996 cup said.<\/p>\n
In the draw in Beirut on Thursday, Indonesia was placed in
\nGroup B against Kuwait, China and South Korea.<\/p>\n
Iran, Iraq, Thailand and Lebanon make up Group A while Japan,
\nSaudi Arabia, Qatar and Uzbekistan will contest Group C.<\/p>\n
The top two teams from each group and the two best third
\nplaced teams will advance to the quarterfinals at the Oct. 12 to
\nOct. 29 tournament in Lebanon.<\/p>\n
\"From the technical point of view, Indonesia is far below the
\nthree teams and physically Indonesian players also cannot compete
\nwith these opponents,\" Siagian said.<\/p>\n
He said the only chance Indonesia had to win a match was
\nagainst Kuwait. In 1996 against Kuwait, Indonesia led 2-0 at one
\nstage before the game closed with a draw of 2-2.<\/p>\n
Siagian said in the run-up to the tournament, Indonesia could
\ndo little more than try to build players' physical strength.<\/p>\n
\"Preparing their physics is the only thing the Soccer
\nAssociation of Indonesia (PSSI) can do,\" Siagian said.<\/p>\n
In Seoul, South Korea's national football coach Huh Jung-Moo
\nsaid Saturday his side was bracing itself for tough challenges
\nagainst Kuwait and China in the first round of the Asian Cup.<\/p>\n
\"The agile Kuwait and the giant China are both formidable
\nchallenges to us,\" Huh said.<\/p>\n
After analyzing videos of a match between China and Japan on
\nMarch 15, Huh said he was impressed by China's brisk pace,
\nprecise passing and tightly-knit defense.<\/p>\n
Japan, which boasts one of the region's strongest attack
\nlines, was held to a goalless draw with China at the time.<\/p>\n
China has yet to win the Asian Cup, the continent's biggest
\ninternational tournament, while the Koreans have won the
\ncompetition twice.<\/p>\n
Kuwait is another major obstacle to South Korea's efforts to
\nreach the last eight.<\/p>\n
\"We have to build up a strong defense to cope with the speedy
\nand supple Kuwaiti strikers. They may easily weave their ways
\nthrough the defense and fire shots from the least expected
\nangles,\" Huh said.<\/p>\n
Pundits have identified Group B the most difficult of the
\nfirst round competitions following Thursday's draw in Beirut.<\/p>",
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