After such a great performance against the Philippines it would have been nice yo see Timor-Leste do one on their biggest rivals, but alas it was not to be and now Timor-Leste join the Philippines, and probably Cambodia in dropping at the group stages.
First half Indonesia 1 Timor-Leste 0
In theory Timor-Leste as the smallest country in the group should have been the whipping boys, but when they play a full strength side they have actually been good and indeed started strong against their huge neighbor.
Indonesia though looked string from the off, with their content attacks finally paying off in the 44th minute when striker Samantha broke the deadlock for the favorites.
Second half Indonesia 3 Timor-Leste 0
Timor-Leste continued the fight against Indonesia and largely defended well in a game that could have ended up a bloodbath, but could only hold out so long.
In the end two quality goals from winger Fajar in the 54th and 74th minute put paid to any hopes of an upset, with Timor bravely holding on for what was in hindsight not a bad result. We can but hope Cambodia do as well when they play Indonesia.
What does it mean?
Indonesia are 3 from 3 and are through. Their last match against Cambodia is a formality and we can just hope they go easy on us.
For Timor-Leste the questions are much more dark and indeed dark. Timor-Leste only played one bad game, against Cambodia. During this game many players were rested, why was this?
Timor have a lot of football talent, but if their South Korean coach leaves it on the bench, then really what is the point. Cambodia also need to keep in mind that not only were Timor the only team they beat, but that they only managed to stay in contention because they had played so well against the Philippines.
Overall far more questions than answers, with many being more about integrity than football itself.
This article is adapted from BPVE, (https://bpve.com/) reported and edited from the great team – Cambodia Sports Review. (https://www.cambodiasportsreview.com/)
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