Patrick Kluivert expressed optimism about Indonesia’s World Cup qualifying campaign after his team secured a crucial 1-0 victory over Bahrain in Jakarta.
The win, witnessed by nearly 70,000 passionate fans, kept their hopes alive for a historic World Cup appearance.
Following a tough 5-1 defeat to Australia in his debut match as head coach, Kluivert’s side responded positively, with Oxford United forward Ole Romeny netting the decisive goal in the 24th minute.
The victory earned Indonesia a vital three points on Tuesday.
In Asian qualifying Group C, Japan has already secured a spot at the 2026 World Cup, leading the table.
Australia sits comfortably in second place with 13 points. Meanwhile, the battle for progression remains intense, Saudi Arabia is in third place with 10 points, just ahead of Indonesia, who now have nine. Bahrain and China trail with six points each.
The teams finishing in third and fourth place will move on to the next round of qualifiers, a pathway that appears to be Indonesia’s most realistic chance of making their first-ever World Cup since gaining independence in 1945.
Kluivert credited the electric atmosphere at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium for pushing his team to victory.
“It was fantastic, we knew the atmosphere would be like this, 69,000 people cheering. I want to thank the fans for having supported us here in the stadium,” said the former Dutch international.
The squad, primarily composed of naturalized players from the Netherlands, delivered only their second win in eight qualifying matches.
Kluivert emphasized that his team deserved the result, believing they could have scored more.
“We have first of all to be very happy with this result, we deserved to win with the chances we created, we deserved even more goals,” he said.
Looking ahead, Indonesia will host China in June before traveling to Japan for their final group-stage clash. Despite the challenges ahead, Kluivert remains confident in his team’s progress.
“In Australia, it was a result that we did not deserve. This time in front of our fans we are very happy to have this result and to share with the fans.
“It’s just the beginning, we have more time till June, we have a little time to fix everything even better.”
