HONG KONG — Indonesia’s challenge for a first World Cup (WC) appearance in almost 90 years takes on a distinctly Dutch flavor 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. — Reuters
