KUALA LUMPUR (25 Dec 2010) – Indonesian chief coach Alfred Riedl said after the team’s official training session this morning at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil that the pressure is squarely on hosts Malaysia when they two meet tomorrow night.
Indonesia will take on Malaysia in the final of the AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 this year with the first leg to be played in Kuala Lumpur tomorrow night while the return leg will be three days later in Jakarta.
Riedl, who seemed to be overly pleased with the pitch conditions at the National Stadium, said that he is looking forward to the match.
“The (Indonesian) press should take photos of the pitch here in Kuala Lumpur and show it to those in charge of the field back in Jakarta. The pitch here is tremendously good, this is how it should be,” said Riedl.
“I believe that for the game tomorrow the pressure will be on Malaysia as they are the hosts and they will be looking for the advantage. In front of their home fans, they need to perform well and they will be under more pressure than us.
“For us, we have all available players fit and ready and we should be at our best for the game.”
Initially there were concerns over the fitness of Firman (Utina) and Okto (Vianus) but the two have since rejoined training this afternoon and where they will be up for selection tomorrow.
To questions if Indonesia can repeat the same level of performance when they overwhelmed Malaysia 5-1 in their first game of the group stage, Riedl said that fir the final it will be a different ball game.
“Malaysia will definitely be different than what they showed in the group stage, they will be more prepared as afterall, they have changed and improved tremendously since that game,” he added.
AFF SUZUKI CUP 2010, FINALS FIXTURES
First-leg – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (BUKIT JALIL NATIONAL STADIUM, KUALA LUMPUR)
26 Dec Malaysia vs Indonesia (2000hrs)
Second-leg – Jakarta, Indonesia (GELORA BUNG KARNO STADIUM, JAKARTA)
29 Dec Indonesia vs Malaysia (2000hrs)
