Indonesia has called up five players of dutch descent for the upcoming SEA Games 33. These include defender Dion Markx, midfielders Ivar Jenner and Marselino Ferdinan, and forwards Rafael Struick and Jens Raven.

Of these, Struick and Raven are currently playing in Indonesia. The other three are based in the Netherlands, necessitating negotiations with their clubs by the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI), as SEA Games 33 falls outside FIFA international match days.

Struick and Jenner were previously called up during coach Shin Tae-yong's tenure. Raven recently faced Vietnam, losing 0-1 in the U23 Southeast Asia 2025 final. Markx and Zijlstra acquired Indonesian citizenship this year, in february and august respectively.

Indonesian players of dutch origin, Rafael Struick (left) and Ivar Jenner (right), will participate in SEA Games 33 in Thailand. Photo: PSSI.

Forward Zijlstra, standing at 1,88 m, is part of Volendam's squad but has not yet played in the Dutch national league. Jenner has played 68 matches for Utrecht's youth team in the Dutch first division, while Markx has appeared in two matches for TOP Oss.

Marselino Ferdinan, a midfielder, is another Indonesian player competing abroad. He is on the books of English first-division club Oxford United but is currently on loan to Trencin in the Slovak national league.

Marselino is considered one of Indonesian football's brightest talents and played a significant role in securing the SEA Games 32 gold medal in Cambodia. However, the 2004-born midfielder's career has seen a slowdown. Since 2022, he has moved to Deinze in the Belgian first division, then to England and Slovakia, but has only played 12 matches and scored one goal across these stints.

Indonesian players Muhammad Ferrari (left) and Marselino Ferdinan (right) celebrate the opening goal in their 3-2 victory over Vietnam in the men's football semi-final at SEA Games 32, held at the Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in 5/2023. Photo: Bola.

Indonesia's roster for SEA Games 33 largely features players who recently competed in the U23 Southeast Asia tournament and the U23 Asia 2026 qualifiers. In addition to Marselino, the squad includes two other players from the SEA Games 32 gold-winning generation: center-back Muhammad Ferarri and midfielder Ananda Raehan.

Before traveling to Thailand, Indonesia's Ministry of Youth and Sports surprisingly set a target of only a silver medal. Nevertheless, coach Indra Sjafri affirmed the team's commitment to striving for a second consecutive gold medal.

"The decision was made after a thorough evaluation of data from the october and november training camps", coach Sjafri stated. "The coaching staff also gained confidence from observing the players compete in the Indonesian national league".

After failing to qualify for the U23 Asia 2026 finals, Indonesia prepared for the SEA Games with a series of progressively challenging friendly matches. In october, the team lost 1-2 and drew 1-1 against India. A month later, Indonesia faced stronger opponent Mali, losing 0-3 and drawing 2-2.

Indonesia is placed in group C of the men's football tournament at SEA Games 33. Following Cambodia's withdrawal, Singapore was moved from group C to group A, making Indonesia's schedule more manageable. The team will face the Philippines on 8/12 and Myanmar on 12/12.

Hieu Luong