Chinese newspaper: "The Indonesian team lost because they were too arrogant"

After three consecutive defeats, the Chinese team found their first point with a 2-1 victory over Indonesia last night (October 15). Despite the home team's victory, Chinese media were still not satisfied with the performance of coach Branko Ivankovic and his team.

The Chinese team defeated Indonesia with a score of 2-1 (Photo: Sohu).

On Sohu, an article titled: "The national football team won because the opponent was too arrogant" pointed out that despite winning, the Chinese team still played passively and lacked improvement in their playing style.

The article said: "The Chinese team defeated the Indonesian team 2-1 at home, winning the first victory in the third qualifying round and scoring three important points. Zhang Yuning scored. However, the Chinese team played passively throughout the match and was extremely passive. In addition to the very high shot conversion rate, luck also favored us as the players' coordination was still slow and showed no signs of improvement. Of course, this victory also temporarily saved Ivankovic, but the Chinese team's hopes were still very bleak.

In the first three matches, the Chinese team played in disarray, losing three consecutive matches, conceding 12 goals and setting a record for the worst start in history. Facing the naturalized Indonesian army, no one was optimistic that the Chinese team could win or even get points.

The article also pointed out the reason for Indonesia's failure was being too arrogant and underestimating the host team when the country of billions of people lost the first three matches.

"The Indonesian team's choice of attacking tactics has become the team's only failure. When Indonesia attacks, their defense is not unified and cannot protect both ends. Coach Shin Tae Yong wants to defeat the Chinese team in one half. The three matches have given the Indonesian team too much impression, so it has created an arrogant mentality in the Indonesian players. Reality has proven that arrogance will lead to failure," still in the article on Sohu.

Indonesia (in white) lost in the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers after three draws (Photo: Getty).

PPSport reported on China’s victory over Indonesia. However, the newspaper did not praise Ivankovic’s team, instead criticizing the national team captain’s slow substitutions.

"The two players had cramps several times, Ivan didn't even understand how to make a double substitution and he was hesitant about whether to make a substitution or not. Five minutes later, Alan and Lin Liangming finally appeared," PPSport quoted Yong Fangfang as saying.

PPSport also posted statistics showing that China was at a disadvantage against Indonesia in many important statistical scores of the match: "The Chinese team only controlled the ball 24% and shot 5-14 against Indonesia."

Sina newspaper said that the Chinese team won by a slim margin and the Chinese Football Association should still fire coach Ivankovic.

"After four matches in the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup. Except for the strength of the Japanese team, which is still good, Saudi Arabia and Australia have regressed compared to the 2022 World Cup. If the Chinese team had prepared better, they would not have only three points now. If people still expect the Chinese team to qualify, replace Ivankovic. This victory is too fragile," Sina wrote.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/bao-trung-quoc-doi-tuyen-indonesia-thua-vi-qua-kieu-ngao-20241016074829132.htm