HONG KONG (Reuters): Indonesia's challenge for a first World Cup appearance in almost 90 years takes on a distinctly Dutch flavour when Shin Tae-yong's side face Saudi Arabia on Thursday hoping to ignite dreams of a long-awaited return to the game's greatest stage.
Not since their debut in 1938 has the archipelago, then known as the Dutch East Indies, appeared at a World Cup but, with the finals growing to 48 nations in 2036, efforts to return have quickly gathered momentum.
Nine players in the squad that defeated the Philippines at a sold-out Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta in June were born in the Netherlands, from whom Indonesia gained independence in 1949.
"It's a boost for everyone that we can go to the next round," said Amsterdam-born midfielder Thom Haye, who scored the opener in the 2-0 win over the Philippines.
"I think in the last months we have seen a little bit of a change in the dynamics in the team.
"We're getting stronger, you really do see us growing together as a team and it's really important that we believe we can achieve these results.
"Everything starts with belief first and then I think you become stronger and stronger."
The team's performances have certainly provided a boost for Indonesian football after a series of damaging incidents tarnished the country's standing.
A FIFA ban due to governmental interference saw the country excluded from qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup, while in late 2022 135 people died in a crush in Malang when police fired tear gas to disperse rioting fans.
Six months later Indonesia made further headlines as the country was stripped of the right to organise the under-20 World Cup due to opposition from local politicians to Israel's participation.
Central to the mood shift has been federation president Erick Thohir, a former owner of Italy's Inter Milan who took over as the organisation's head in early 2023 and who has fast-tracked plans to tap extensively into the diaspora.
As a result, South Korean Shin, who led Indonesia to the last 16 of the Asian Cup in Qatar in January, will take the country's strongest-ever squad into the third round of Asian qualifying.
There Indonesia will face a daunting challenge against battle-hardened World Cup veterans Saudi Arabia, Japan and Australia as well as Bahrain and China in the quest for one of two automatic World Cup berths from Group C.
"As a team we can be really proud of the last months, of the results we've had, so of course we're really happy we have gone through," said Haye. "But it doesn't stop here.
"We believe in each other and the possibilities we have, so in the next round we want to show who we are.
"I'm looking forward to the next group and the teams and it's a challenge. But I like challenges, so that's good."
(Reporting by Michael Church; Editing by Nick Mulvenney and Peter Rutherford) - Reuters
