Indonesia's "Garuda" Squad Dominates Southeast Asia with Two Consecutive Wins

Two victories wrapped in clean sheets for the Indonesian national team concluded the 2025-2026 season. Next, the focus of the "Garuda" is to pursue their first ASEAN trophy in July-August.

The two friendly matches this June, marking the end of the 2025-2026 season campaign, were completed perfectly by the Indonesian national team. After Oman, it was Mozambique's turn, the African representative, to be defeated 1-0 in an exhibition game at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium, Jakarta, on Tuesday (9/6/2026) evening.

In front of 29,889 supporters filling the stands of SUGBK, Indonesia scored the only goal of the match in the 12th minute. A through pass from Ragnar Oratmangoen was finished off by Ole Romeny, who managed to deceive the Mozambican goalkeeper, Ivane Urrubal.

The positive double results in two international matches in June 2026 are an important asset for the "Garuda" squad as they look forward to two Southeast Asian level tournaments. First, Indonesia will make its debut under Coach John Herdman at the ASEAN Championship 2026, scheduled for July to August.

Secondly, Emil Audero and his teammates will host the inaugural edition of the FIFA ASEAN Cup in the first division, scheduled for September-October 2026. Three Southeast Asian teams participating in the 2027 Asian Cup, namely Thailand, Vietnam, and Singapore, have the opportunity to test Indonesia's quality. Additionally, there will be Malaysia and one invited team from the East Asia or South Asia region that could serve as challengers.

Although facing relatively equal opponents at the regional level, Indonesia cannot underestimate the competitors in these two tournaments. Moreover, Thailand is one of Indonesia's opponents in the group stage of the 2027 Asian Cup, alongside Japan and Qatar.

The best squad that led Indonesia to defeat Oman and Mozambique will compete in the FIFA ASEAN Cup, which is included in the FIFA international match calendar. The game strategy for the two matches this month will be optimized by Herdman.

On the other hand, Herdman will focus on utilizing players from the Super League in the ASEAN Championship. The two matches this month could serve as a blueprint for the players to study before pursuing their first trophy with Herdman.

Local league players, such as Rizky Ridho, Dony Tri Pamungkas, Mauro Ziljstra, Rayhan Hannan, and Yabes Sayuri, have the opportunity to remain the backbone of strength in the ASEAN Championship. They can also serve as role models for their teammates in quickly understanding the tactical desires of Herdman, who holds a British passport.

Compared to the quality of competitors in ASEAN, Oman and Mozambique have better capabilities. Oman is one of the teams that is in the top 80 of the FIFA rankings.

Mozambique has a football style reminiscent of Portugal. This is what enables them to consistently be a dark horse in the competition at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Facing both, Indonesia performed brilliantly, winning and keeping a clean sheet.

In addition, a new history was beautifully created. Garuda was able to end the curse since February 1987 by recording its second victory in the meeting record against Oman. The 3-0 advantage on Friday (5/6/2026) presented a positive aspect of Indonesia's performance, which had previously suffered three defeats and one draw against Oman since the new millennium.

Specifically, the victory against Mozambique marks Indonesia's fifth positive result against African teams in 21 encounters. Interestingly, Mozambique is the African team that Indonesia has defeated while being ranked higher in the FIFA rankings. Mozambique is ranked 101, while Indonesia is in the 122nd position.

Previously, Indonesia was only able to defeat weak African teams, such as Burundi, Mauritius, Mauritania, and Tanzania.

Since the kickoff was blown by the referee from Singapore, Muhammad Taqi, Herdman's team has been trying to apply pressure and maintain a more dominant ball control. The 3-4-3 formation remains their mainstay.

Changes were made by Herdman by substituting the injured Justin Hubner with Calvin Verdonk, while Nathan Tjoe-A-On and Beckham Putra were replaced by Dony Tri Pamungkas and Marselino Ferdinan. In the goalkeeper position, Maarten Paes, the Ajax Amsterdam goalkeeper, was given the opportunity to intensify the competition with Emil Audero, who performed brilliantly against Oman.

Indonesia created a dangerous opportunity in the third minute. The first corner kick was concluded with a header from defender Elkan Baggott, which hit the goalpost.

After scoring a quick goal in the 12th minute, Indonesia also had the opportunity to extend their lead in the 21st minute. Marselino's shot was blocked by a Mozambican defender in front of the goal line.

Mozambique coach Chiquinho Conde repeatedly urged his players to play calmly and at a slow tempo. This was to curb Indonesia's aggressive pressing in the final third.

Relying on a rapid transition, Mozambique created two double opportunities in the 26th minute. It began with a shot from striker Alcides Edmundo, which was deflected by Paes with his foot, followed by a shot from winger Dayo Antonio, which was blocked by Kevin Diks with his body.

Indonesia closed the first half with a collection of nine shots versus three shots from the visiting team. The Garuda squad's ball possession reached 54 percent.

In the second half, Indonesia's attacking performance declined. There were no additional shots on target, despite ball possession increasing to 56 percent.

The only opportunity created by the Garuda team occurred in the 67th minute. Two substitute wingers, Rayhan Hannan and Nathan, established a collaborative relationship between the wing positions. Rayhan's cross was concluded with a shot from Nathan that hit the crossbar of the opposing team's goal.

Furthermore, Indonesia's dominance of possession was difficult to break with accurate final passes. Mozambique's lack of discipline was the culprit.

Indonesia's efforts to extend its advantage through set pieces also did not yield results. In the 90th minute, Baggott was once again able to connect with a corner kick from his teammate, but it was thwarted by the goalkeeper of Mozambique, a team that speaks Portuguese.

Mozambique, eager to equalize, seemed to run out of ideas to threaten Paes' goal. Only a speculative shot from right wing-back Bheu Januario was able to force Paes into a save.