Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jakarta: Miguel Sandberg will have quite a story to tell when he returns home to his Under-17 teammates in Stockholm in the coming weeks.
The 16-year-old enjoyed the experience of a lifetime on Thursday, making his international football debut in front of a roaring crowd in the illustrious Gelora Bung Karno stadium in Jakarta.
Not bad for a first trip to Asia.
By virtue of his mother's heritage, Sandberg is part of the Chinese Taipei squad participating in the AFC U-19 Championship Finals for the first time in 44 years, and he clearly enjoyed his opening bow on the international stage, despite his side's 3-1 loss to host nation, Indonesia.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jakarta: Indonesia head coach Indra Sjafri has praised his young players for the patience they showed during Thursday’s far from straightforward victory against Chinese Taipei at the 2018 AFC U-19 Championship Group A tie.
The Southeast Asians were made to dig deep against a side making its first appearance at the tournament for 44 years, with goals from Witan Sulaeman – his second of the game – and Egy Maulana Vikri eventually ensuring a 3-1 win for the hosts despite Chinese Taipei drawing level at one point.
“It was a great victory and I want to thank my players for their endless effort until the very last minute,” declared Sjafri.
“Our opponents played with a compact defence which certainly caused us some issues in the first half, but thanks to a change in tactics after the break we managed to reduce the pressure on ourselves somewhat by attacking more from the flanks.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jakarta: Witan Sulaeman lit up the opening night of Indonesia's 2018 AFC U-19 Championship campaign with two decisive goals against Chinese Taipei, but his focus remains solely on the tasks ahead of the host nation.
The 18-year-old's (pictured above, right) brace proved crucial for Indra Sjafri's side. His first goal, a close-range headed effort, gave them a 2-1 lead in 70th minute over the well-organised visitors, before his second effectively killed off the tie if the dying minutes.
The winger also supplied the cross for Egy Maulana Vikri's 50th minute opener to seal a superb performance and send the 17,000-strong crowd at Jakarta's Gelora Bung Karno Stadium home happy.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jakarta: Witan Sulaeman’s second half brace proved the difference as hosts Indonesia overcame a resilient Chinese Taipei to record a 3-1 win on Thursday to begin their 2018 AFC U-19 Championship campaign on a positive note.
The victory handed the Southeast Asians an ideal start to the competition against a side they had, for long periods, struggled to break down at Jakarta’s Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.
The result sees Indra Sjafri’s charges go top of the Group A table ahead of the United Arab Emirates who beat Qatar 2-1 earlier in the day.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jakarta: United Arab Emirates head coach Ludovic Batelli believes Thursday’s 2-1 win over Qatar could well be a sign of better things to come for his side at the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018.
Goals from Ahmad Fawzi and the impressive Ali Saleh provided a welcome start to the UAE’s campaign in Group A, one which sees them occupying second spot behind hosts Indonesia who beat Chinese Taipei 3-1 to assume pole position.
Although not entirely happy with every aspect of the display against their regional rivals, Balleti believes there were enough positives to underline the potential that exists within the Emirati squad.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Jakarta: Ali Saleh produced a virtuoso performance as he helped the United Arab Emirates begin their AFC U-19 Championship campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Qatar on Thursday.
The talented 18-year-old produced a deft assist and a superb goal to hand his side the perfect start to their Group A campaign with games against Chinese Taipei and host nation Indonesia still to come for head coach Ludovic Batelli’s charges.
After a bright start in sultry conditions, Qatar fashioned the first chance of the game, midfielder Abdollah Ali fizzing a shot narrowly wide of the target with four minutes played.
Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Bekasi: After a 12-year absence, Malaysia are eager to make the most of their appearance at the AFC U-19 Championship, starting with Saturday's match against Saudi Arabia, according to head coach Bojan Hodak.
Malaysia will face the two-time champion Saudis, runners-up in Bahrain two years ago, in their opening fixture, having ended a run of five consecutive failed attempts to reach the tournament proper.
Former Johor Darul Ta'zim boss Hodak says that now the side have reached the Finals in neighbouring Indonesia, they will be looking extract every ounce of experience from the competition.