Indonesian National Team’s Path to Semifinals After Defeat by the Philippines: What Does Indra Sjafri Say?

The Indonesian U-22 National Team started their SEA Games 2025 campaign with a very poor result. Under Indra Sjafri’s coaching, they were defeated by the Philippines with a score of 0-1. The only goal of the match was scored by Banatao Out Abang at the end of the first half after taking advantage of a long throw-in. In the second half, Indra Sjafri tried to change the team’s playing style and strategy by introducing some players. However, the Philippine defense discipline and the lack of efficiency from Hokky Caraka CS in seizing opportunities kept the 0-1 lead for the Philippines until the end of the game. Indra Sjafri expressed his disappointment with the result, stating that the players did not execute the game scheme correctly: “Yes, it’s a subpar result for us. We started the match in the first half and, honestly, we didn’t play as expected.”