JAKARTA (Reuters): Indonesia coach Shin Tae-yong believes his side can continue to compete for a place at the World Cup finals despite reaching the halfway stage of the third round of Asian qualifiers, bottom of their qualifying group.

Indonesia were hammered 4-0 by their visitors in front of a packed Gelora Bung Karno Stadium on Friday to remain three points from five games in the region’s qualifiers for the 2026 finals.

Shin, however, was optimistic about his side’s chances with five matches remaining in the current phase of the qualifiers.

“I want to play these third-round matches without any regrets and hope we can still get third or fourth in the rankings,” the South Korean said.

“I can’t guarantee we will, but I still want to challenge.

“As a manger, it’s inevitable that we have pressure and I have to accept that. I want to see the players working as a team and still challenging themselves for the playoffs.”

Japan lead the standings with 13 points, with Australia, Saudi Arabia and China all seven points behind Hajime Moriyasu’s side, with Bahrain on five and Indonesia supporting the standings.

The top two teams from each of Asia’s three qualifying groups will receive automatic places at the World Cup, while the third- and fourth-placed nations will advance to another round, giving hope to the likes of Indonesia.

Indonesia are seeking to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since gaining independence from the Netherlands in 1945, having previously appeared in the finals when they were known as the Dutch East Indies in 1938.

Despite the current squad packed with European-born players recruited from the country’s diaspora, Shin’s side were outclassed by a Japanese side that sits 115 places above the Southeast Asian nation in the FIFA world rankings.

“In every factor in football we’re way behind Japan, but it’s still a shame about the result,” said Shin, whose side squandered the first opportunity to take the lead when Ragnar Oratmangoen’s effort was saved by Zion Suzuki.

“It is not easy for the players to maintain the same level during the 90 minutes of the game.

“If Ragnar had scored at the first opportunity, I think the result could have been different.

“But we are the losing team, we lost and there are no excuses. I still remember that moment and it’s a shame.”

(Reporting by Michael Church; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) – Reuters