Liverpool and Indonesia like Areca split in two
Bak areca is halved, the story of Liverpool and Indonesian football used to be and is now similar.
Malaysian fans: eh bro, when was the last time the Indonesian senior national team won?
Indonesia: emm ...
Malaysia: hahaha its been too long bro, to forget‘ right!
Maybe once the conversation happened if there were fans from Indonesia and Malaysia teasing each other about the achievements of their respective national teams.
The ridicule may be painful, painful because it is true according to the facts.
Indonesia indeed can only be a spectator when the neighboring national team alternates to become champions.
Have you heard of anything similar?
Must have been. If there were Liverpool fans around you, similar taunts would often be heard.
Not only that, both have been fasting for a long time, Liverpool and Indonesia now also seem to have similarities and glimmer of hope in their football.
Youre welcome (No) Cool
1991 SEA Games in Manila. That was the answer to the question raised by Malaysian fans above.
It has been 28 years for Indonesias senior national team to fast the title after the gold medal which was won by Ferril Hattu et al by beating Thailand in the top party.
At that time, the SEA Games soccer title was still competing for the senior national team. The rules for mandating to lose the U-23 national team only began at the 2001 SEA Games.
Not a short time indeed to never win a title, maybe even now there are very few Indonesians who remember the victory.
The difference in one year before, more precisely the 1989-1990 season, Liverpool managed to become the Premier League top caste champion who was then still called First Division.
Diarsiteki by King Kenny Dalglish, the title became the last Premier League title achieved by Liverpool to date.
Since Elizabeth IIs domestic football changed its name to Premier League in 1992, Liverpool has never lifted the trophy again.
Most pol, Liverpool only became runners-up, namely in the 2008-2009 and 2013-2014 seasons.
Indonesia is cooler (or not cool?) Than Liverpool about this.
The Garuda Team five times (FIVE TIMES!) Is almost a champion and only becomes runner-up in the AFF Cup title or what was formerly called the Tiger Cup.
But now supporters of Liverpool and Indonesia may be able to forget the dark history. Now there is a glimmer of hope for them to go towards a better direction.
New Hope
The arrival of Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker seemed to change the face of the Liverpool defense.
From those who previously resembled a team that could only attack and stutter when they survived, the Reds have now become the best defense team in Europe.
Statistics and the top of the Premier League standings say that.
This season, more than two occasions when they were first runners-up, seems to be the best opportunity for Liverpool to break the English League title which they have lived for almost three decades.
Similar to Liverpool, Indonesia has a similar story.
In Indonesia, the figure of Van Dijk and Alisson appeared in the National Police Chief Tito Karnavian and the Antimafia Ball Task Force formed by him.
Starting from the restlessness of citizens and lovers of national football, now the special task force from the police has worked and has begun to arrest several suspected soccer mafia in Indonesia.
Since the gold medal in Manila, maybe this is the brightest moment in the history of Indonesian football in the last three decades. More than the best appearance of the national team at the 2007 Asian Cup, or the frenzied public buzz about the AFF Cup 2010.
Imagine our football is clean of the mafia, yes maybe it still exists but they are already afraid to act with the police who have intervened, things that have never seemed to happen before.
Imagine we have clean competition, players and clubs fight each other competitively, trying to improve their abilities massively, for the sake of football we get positive results.
The national team that achieves seems no longer a dream.
If Van Dijk and Alisson come to overcome Liverpools back line problem, National Police Chief Tito Karnavian appears as a savior to overcome the mafia - a problem that cannot be resolved by PSSI.
Indeed, like Liverpools defeat of Manchester City this season, maybe there will be obstacles that occur in the journey of Indonesian football and task force work later.
But after all, that does not seem to downplay the public expectations of Liverpool and Indonesia to return to achievement.
Will Liverpool win the Premier League at the end of this season?
Will Indonesian football be even better after this?
We can only hope.
Its just that, hopefully, there will be no slip of Steven Gerrard again.[]