Jakarta. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo praised the national football team for their victory over the Philippines on Tuesday night, which secured Indonesia's place in the third round of World Cup qualifying for the first time under the current competition format.
Indonesia is the only Southeast Asian nation to reach the third round, following a 2-0 win over the Philippines at Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta. The goals were scored by naturalized player Thom Haye and Rizky Ridho.
Other Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, and Vietnam, failed to secure the top two spots in their respective groups needed to advance.
"I think all football fans here are happy that we made it to the third round under the current FIFA qualifying format. We made history by advancing to the third round," said Jokowi, who attended the match with First Lady Iriana.
"We are grateful for reaching a higher level, but I credit our players who worked very hard and displayed extraordinary spirit," he added.
Indonesia concluded the second round as the runner-up in Group F with 10 points, five points behind group leader Iraq. Vietnam is third with six points, and the result of their last group match against Iraq on Wednesday will not affect the standings.
Thailand finished third in Group C, with the same points and goal difference as runner-up China. However, China ranked higher due to their head-to-head superiority, having a win and a draw against Thailand. Group C rival Singapore ended the competition at the bottom of the standings with just one point.
Malaysia also finished third, despite a 3-1 win over Chinese Taipei in their last Group D match, trailing behind Oman and Kyrgyzstan.
In Group B, Myanmar came last in the standings behind Japan, North Korea, and Syria.
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