Coach Riedl's replacement candidate believes Vietnam will reach the final

(Baonghean.vn) – Despite being quite successful in bringing the Indonesian team to the semi-finals of the AFF Cup 2016 and defeating Vietnam 2-1 in the first leg. However, coach Alfred Riedl is facing the risk of losing his job if he cannot reach the final.

Currently, coach Alfred Riedl's contract with the Indonesian Football Federation will expire after the end of the 2016 AFF Cup. And most likely, Mr. Riedl will decide to return to Vienna (Austria) to take care of his wife who is having health problems. And in case the Indonesian team does not get a favorable result in the second leg of the semi-final at My Dinh Stadium, the country's Football Federation is preparing a plan to replace the Austrian strategist.

Coach Robert Alberts - the number 1 candidate to lead the Indonesian national team in the near future does not think that the Indonesian team can overcome Vietnam in the semi-finals.

ESPN magazine has named the number 1 candidate for the position of head coach of the Indonesian national team in the near future as Dutch coach Robert Alberts. This 62-year-old coach used to be a player for Ajax Amsterdamsche and has had coaching experience since 1984. Currently, Mr. Robert Alberts is leading the PSM Makassar Club in the Indonesian National Championship.

Revealing to ESPN, Mr. Robert Alberts said that the position of head coach of the Indonesian national team was mentioned last week when he was introduced by the owners of domestic clubs to replace coach A. Riedl: "The director of the club where I am working said that I have been shortlisted to become the coach of the Indonesian national team. But to think about this, my contract with PSM Makassar Club needs to be released."

The strategist who became a rival of the Malaysian national team coach - Ong Kim Swee shared more: "I really want to continue coaching in Makassar, but I have a clause in my contract that if any national team makes an offer, I am free to leave. Leading a national team has always been interesting to me."

In particular, the person who is likely to replace coach Alfred Riedl is not optimistic about Indonesia's chances of advancing before the second leg of the semi-finals: "Indonesia had a bit of luck in the first leg of the semi-finals, because Vietnam created many scoring opportunities, but could not take advantage of them. I think Vietnam will win at home to reach the final. But if so, this is still a good start for Indonesian football after a year of being banned by FIFA. I can see great potential for Indonesian football in the future."

As for coach Alfred Riedl, former head coach of the Vietnam national team, he does not think so.

Coach Alfred Riedl will most likely leave the Indonesian national team immediately if they fail to reach the final of the 2016 AFF Cup.

Speaking to the press this morning, the Austrian strategist said: “Although in theory, the Vietnamese team only needs to beat us 1-0 to advance, in my opinion that will not be an easy result. The Vietnamese players are playing at home but face many disadvantages due to pressure from the media and fans. The media and fans have high expectations for the Vietnamese team to reach the final, so they demand that Coach Huu Thang's team win at all costs. This pressure will be a psychological pressure for the home team and will create favorable conditions for us. Certainly the Vietnamese players will play with quite heavy legs while we are more comfortable."

The Austrian coach has reason to say so because two Indonesian players with minor injuries, Boaz Salossa and Fachrudin, have returned to training and will recover in time. Fahrudin Aryanto and Yanto Basna are also back after suspension, so he has many more options.

Meanwhile, although the Vietnamese team welcomed the return of Dinh Luat and Minh Tuan, the defensive midfielder position left by Hoang Thinh really gave coach Nguyen Huu Thang a headache in finding a replacement.

Trung Kien