U.23 Indonesia was denied to add a naturalized player, why?

According to coach Kluivert, he had to refuse the request to add a naturalized player to the Indonesian U.23 team, even though this could cause the team to lose the chance to qualify for the U.23 Asian finals, because the 2026 World Cup goal is more important.

Indonesian national team confirms striker Ole Romeny will be out long-term

This is the reason why coach Kluivert was forced to not release his players for the U.23 Indonesia team, after determining that key striker Ole Romeny would not be able to recover in time from a broken leg that required surgery in July.

The U.23 Indonesia team (red shirt) cannot add strikers as desired, because the team does not release players.

Photo: Dong Nguyen Khang

Without this striker, the Indonesian team is in danger of winning a ticket to the 2026 World Cup, with the fourth qualifying round of the Asian region taking place in October (against Saudi Arabia and Iraq).

"Unfortunately, Ole Romeny cannot be here. We have to find alternative solutions. One of them is keeping Mauro Zijlstra, who has just completed his naturalization, as an alternative. This is completely possible, but I also have other players who can play in that position (center forward)," coach Kluivert said after the Indonesian team's training session in Surabaya on September 2.

In the September FIFA Days schedule, the Indonesian team will play two international friendly matches against the Taiwanese team on September 5, replacing the Kuwait team that suddenly withdrew at the last minute, and against the Lebanese team on September 8. These are important preparations for the archipelago team, before competing in the fourth qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup in Asia in October.

"Regarding Mauro Zijlstra (20-year-old player, of Dutch origin), our initial intention was to let him play for the U.23 team in the U.23 Asian qualifiers. However, due to certain situations, I was forced to keep him in the national team. This may not increase the strength of the U.23 team, but the goal of the national team is more important, we need to focus all our efforts on the opportunity to win a ticket to the 2026 World Cup," coach Kluivert added.

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According to CNN Indonesia, without Mauro Zijlstra, the Indonesian U.23 team, led by coach Gerald Vanenburg, also from the Netherlands, still has four naturalized players in the squad, including Matthew Baker, Dion Markx, Jens Raven and Rafael Struick. Rafael Struick was added from the Indonesian national team.

After losing to the U.23 Vietnam team 0-1 in the final match of the U.23 Southeast Asian tournament at home on July 29, U.23 Indonesia has significantly increased its squad to increase its strength in the qualifying round of the U.23 Asian tournament to compete for a ticket to the final round.

In the U.23 Asian qualifiers, the U.23 Indonesia team is in Group J with the strongest opponents, U.23 Korea, Laos and Macau. They will start with the match against U.23 Laos on September 3, then meet Macau on September 6, and in the final match they will have to fight for survival with the strongest opponent, U.23 Korea on September 9.

Meanwhile, the U.23 Vietnam team, after winning the U.23 Southeast Asian Championship for the third consecutive time, is in Group C with Yemen, Singapore and Bangladesh (playing at home in Viet Tri, Phu Tho from September 3 to 9). The U.23 Thailand and Malaysia teams are in Group F with Lebanon and Mongolia.

The AFC U23 Championship qualifiers (played from September 3 to 9) have a total of 11 groups, with each group consisting of 4 teams, with only the top team in each group and the 4 best second-placed teams qualifying for the finals in Saudi Arabia to compete in early 2026 from January 7 to 25, along with the host team (a total of 16 teams).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/u23-indonesia-bi-tu-choi-bo-sung-mot-cau-thu-nhap-tich-vi-sao-185250903102700091.htm