Indonesian coach remains optimistic despite losing the championship at home

In the final match that took place on the evening of August 18, U17 Indonesia lost 1-2 to U17 Mali. The away team demonstrated effective attacking play and outstanding individual technique.

The 2025 Africa U-17 Cup of Nations runners-up took an early two-goal lead through Zoumana Ballo and Seydou Dembele in the first half. Indonesia's only goal was scored by Fadly Alberto Henga.

Despite the defeat, coach Nova Arianto sees this as an important learning opportunity for the Indonesian U17 players before the U17 World Cup finals which will take place in November 2025.

"I'm glad the players learned a lot from playing against Mali. After this match, we will evaluate the team's performance to see who will be selected. Hopefully they will continue to develop in the future," the former Indonesian national team defender shared.

The defeat meant that Indonesia only finished second. Mali took the top spot with a perfect record of three wins. The next positions went to Tajikistan and Uzbekistan respectively.

Before meeting Mali, U17 Indonesia had a 2-2 draw with Tajikistan and won 2-0 against Uzbekistan.

In the near future, U17 Indonesia will continue to train in Spain to prepare for the U17 World Cup in Qatar. Indonesia is the only representative of Southeast Asia to have a ticket to the biggest tournament on the planet in the U17 age group.