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Indonesian striker of Dutch descent, Ole Romeny, celebrates a goal during the 1-5 defeat to Australia in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers at the Allianz Arena in Sydney, Australia, on March 20, 2025. Photo by AP |
Ten Europe-based players have been named to the roster, including Rayo Vallecano goalkeeper Emil Audero, Lille defender Calvin Verdonk and Borussia Monchengladbach defender Kevin Diks.
Five of them are currently competing in the Dutch leagues: Ajax goalkeeper Maarten Paes, Go Ahead Eagles defender Dean James, Willem II midfielder Nathan Tjoe-A-On, and the Fortuna Sittard duo of defender Justin Hubner and forward Ole Romeny.
The other two are 1.96-m-tall center-back Elkan Baggott from English Championship side Millwall and midfielder Joey Pelupessy from Belgian club Lommel.
Two overseas players based outside of Europe have also been selected for the tournament — 1.96-m-tall forward Mitchell Baker from Georgetown Hoyas in the U.S., who already debuted and scored four goals in the ASEAN Cup that wrapped up last month, alongside Macarthur forward Luke Vickery from Australia.
However, Indonesia will be without national team captain and Sassuolo center-back Jay Idzes due to a thigh injury. Midfielder Marselino Ferdinan of Oxford United and Utrecht forward Miliano Jonathans are also sidelined for the tournament due to ongoing recoveries.
Compared to the domestic-heavy squad that exited the 2026 ASEAN Cup in the group stage, head coach John Herdman has kept 10 core players. Alongside Baker, the group include experienced players such as center-back Jordi Amat, midfielder Thom Haye and forward Ragnar Oratmagoen, all of whom spent years competing in European leagues before moving to Indonesia.
Among the 23 players on the finalized squad list, 17 are mixed. 13 are from the Netherlands, two from Australia, and one each from England and Italy.
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Indonesian midfielder of Dutch origin Thom Haye (number 19) during the 0-3 loss to Vietnam in the group stage of the ASEAN Cup, at Pakansari Stadium, Bogor, Indonesia, on Aug. 3, 2026. Photo by Read/Duc Dong |
The squad will assemble on Sept. 21 ahead of their Group A opener against Singapore on Sept. 25. The team will then face Malaysia on Sept. 28 before concluding the group stage against Bangladesh on Oct. 1.
To win the 2026 FIFA ASEAN Cup, Indonesia must finish at the top of Group A. If regional rival Vietnam successfully top Group B, the two nations will meet in the final, following Vietnam’s commanding 3-0 away victory in the previous group stage encounter.
The player drawing the most attention in that rematch will be center-back Justin Hubner. The Fortuna Sittard defender recently sparked controversy by publicly downplaying Vietnam’s previous victory, arguing that the earlier ASEAN Cup was not an official FIFA tournament and that Indonesia could not field their strongest squad at the time.