Facing a mammoth task to try and turn around a 4-0 defeat in the first leg of the 2020 AFF Suzuki Cup final, Indonesia have declared that they are the team to beat in the second leg on New Year’s Day.

Garuda coach Shin Tae-yong stopped short of saying that they’ll be able to swing the tie overall but he nonetheless said he has absolute faith that his young team will emerge victorious in the second leg.

“I strongly believe we will win the match tomorrow," said the Korean tactician. 

“Looking back on the first leg, our team was nervous and swayed by the referee’s whistle but that was understandable as they have little experience in big matches.

“Of course Thailand are a strong team and this will be a difficult match but I’m going to win tomorrow and I have complete faith in my team to do so.”

Thailand, meanwhile, know just how strong of a position they are in and that hefty first-leg advantage will allow the side to be able to express themselves on Saturday, according to coach Alexandre Polking.

“With the good result from the first leg we feel a little more free and able to play the way that we like and I see no reason to change that. The most important thing just to make it clear again though is that it’s still not over.

“We need to bring the performance that we know we can and then celebrate after that but it’s still not over and we need to approach things with the same hungry feeling that we have throughout the tournament.”

The coach, who is only contracted through to the end of the tournament, confirmed that no talks over an extension have taken place but that he’d love to be a part of what he termed a ‘great’ future for Thai football.

“No, there have been no talks for now because we’re all totally focussed on finishing the job," added the Brazilian. 

“If we want to stay as the number one nation in Southeast Asia it’s important to have continuity and I hope to be part of that because I can see a great future with a good generation already coming through at U-23 level.

“The success that we have had is all down to the players because even if we change systems or our approach the players have been able to adapt and they’ve done an unbelievable job.”