RI out for revenge against Thailand in Tiger Cup final
RI out for revenge against Thailand in Tiger Cup final
BANGKOK (AFP): Indonesia, drubbed 4-1 by Thailand in the first round of the Tiger Cup, is determined to avoid another humiliation in the final of the Southeast Asian championships here on Saturday.
Indonesian team manager Muhammad Zein vowed Friday his squad would not make the same mistakes again.
"We have learnt our lesson and we hope to avoid such a defeat in the final. No doubt we are the underdogs but we hope to give Thailand a tough fight," said Zein.
He added that Indonesia has done well to reach the final especially after the nail-biting match against Vietnam in the semifinal on Thursday.
"We are quite fortunate to be in the final and we hope to make the most of it. Thailand are playing at home and they are very difficult to beat on their home ground."
"Moreover I am sure the locals fans will turn out in full force to support them. So, it's going to be difficult but if we can play like we did against Vietnam, we should be able to give them a fight," said Zein.
He added that Kiatisuk Senamuang will be to be tightly marked as he has proven to be very dangerous.
"He has scored in all matches and is very deadly. We have to mark him closely."
On the fact that Thailand will have veteran striker Worrawot Srimaka back in action after serving a one-match suspension for a red card offense against the Philippines, Zein said that he is surprised the Thai player was only out for one game.
"He was suspended for the semifinal match against Malaysia only when I thought that he should have been out for at least two matches. I think the punishment was not fair," said Zein.
However, Zein added that if Srimaka plays in the final, they will also have to keep an eye on him as he is a dangerous player with good height.
Thailand coach Peter Withe, on the other hand, said that it was nice to have Srimaka back in the team. "Now I have an additional option in my strikeforce."
"That is a welcome option considering the fact that I am under tremendous pressure to win the Tiger Cup for the sake of the fans."
"The team is always under a lot of pressure playing at home and so far we have produced with only one match remaining."
Asked if Thailand, as host, will suffer the jinx of no host nation ever winning the trophy since the inception of the tournament in 1996, Withe said that they hope to break the jinx.
"As I said, we are under a lot of pressure to win and hopefully we will do so and break the jinx," said Withe.
Singapore hosted the inaugural tournament in 1996 where Thailand won. In 1998 Vietnam was host but Singapore won.
Thailand, based on its current form where it seems to be a class of its own, is an odds-on favorite to break the jinx and be the first host nation to win the Tiger Cup.
While Vietnam is determined not to return home empty handed and will be gunning for the bronze medal when it plays Malaysia for third place.
Vietnam coach Alfred Reidl said that he promised the Vietnamese soccer crazy fans that he would return with a medal and that is exactly what he is planning to do.
"It's unfortunate that we failed to reach the final. I think we were plain unlucky against Indonesia although we did fight hard," said Reidl.
"In any case we are now in the fight for the bronze medal and I intend to fulfill my pledge to the Vietnamese fans back home of returning home with a medal."