Low optimism on RI's chances against China
JAKARTA (JP): National team manager Irawadi D. Hanafi said on Tuesday he was not too optimistic about Indonesia's chances of overcoming heavy favorite China at home on Sunday to reach the second round of the 2002 World Cup qualifier.
He admitted in a news briefing that national players might be less fit for the match as they still had to play for their respective clubs in the Bank Mandiri national league only one day after returning home from Kunming, China, last Tuesday.
Indonesia was beaten 5-1 on May 13 by host China, for the first time in the qualifying round, giving way to the Asian powerhouse to advance to the final qualifier along with nine other Asian zone group champions.
Only two or three Asian countries will qualify for the World Cup finals and join hosts South Korea and Japan, which qualify automatically.
Indonesia will resume training on Wednesday, the same day that the Chinese team will touch down at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
"I have never pushed the players to win over China because we already understand our skills. We can't force them further if they are under form. The result will tell the story of our team's real fight," Irawadi said.
However, he refused to blame it on the league schedule, which was revised several times. The latest revision, issued on April 24, said the second round was from May 6 to June 19.
Irawadi, who is also treasurer of the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI), urged the players to be honest about their physical condition.
"If they are not physically fit and are exhausted, they should tell me honestly. If a player is not physically ready, even if he's a key player, I won't field him."
Irawadi also said that China started the team preparation three months ago, compared to Indonesia which only had three weeks of training before the qualifier kicked off early in April.
"With better payment, Chinese players will race to show their best. The Chinese national squad coach, Bora Milutinovic, receives US$1.2 million per year while our coach Benny Dolo only gets a tiny amount compared to him."
A Chinese player can get a $300,000 contract with a soccer club. Playing on the national team is merely to improve the players' national ranking.
"China is really serious about developing soccer as an industry. Kunming itself, for example, has 12 soccer fields in one area," he said.
Despite the gloomy outlook, Irawadi has asked soccer fans to support the national team. PSSI plans to issue some 60,000 tickets for Sunday's match at Bung Karno stadium in Senayan sports complex.
"There must be hope. We hope the score can bring us a bit of joy. By seeing the match themselves, the soccer fans can see how their national team plays and after all, they can make their own judgment on which team deserves to qualify for the World Cup," he said. (ivy)
Group 9 standing: (Team, P, W, D, L, GF, GA, Pts), (China, 5, 5, 0, 0, 23, 3, 15), (Indonesia, 5, 4, 0, 1, 16, 5, 12), (Maldives, 6, 1, 1, 4, 8, 19, 4), (Cambodia, 5, 0, 1, 4, 1, 19, 1)