Indonesia loses Serie A goalkeeper for 2026 World Cup qualifiers

Audero sustained an injury during a training session with Cremonese and missed the 1-1 draw with Como in Serie A on Sept. 27.

The goalkeeper informed coach Patrik Kluivert on Oct. 3 that he is still injured, forcing him to remain in Italy for treatment, OneFootball reported.

Audero, 28, who was loaned to Cremonese from Como at the start of the 2025-2026 season, had made five appearances, including four in Serie A, where he kept two clean sheets and helped the team sit in seventh place with nine points.

Indonesia goalkeeper Emil Audero. Photo by Instagram/@emil_audero

Born in Indonesia to an Indonesian father and an Italian mother, Audero moved to Italy when he was under a year old and lost his Indonesian nationality in 2018. He regained Indonesian citizenship in March 2025 to play for the national team. He made his debut in a 1-0 win over China in the third qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup on June 5.

Before choosing to represent Indonesia, Audero was expected to be called up to the Italy national team but did not get the opportunity despite playing for Italy's youth teams from U15 to U21. He started from the Juventus youth academy but only played one match for their first team before being loaned out. In 2019, Juventus sold Audero to Sampdoria for US$23 million, and he has since played 180 matches in 10 Serie A seasons for Sampdoria, Inter Milan, Como and Cremonese.

With Audero unavailable, coach Kluivert called up two additional goalkeepers: Nadeo Argawinata and Reza Arya. The most likely starter is Maarten Paes, who plays for FC Dallas in the U.S., while the second choice is Ernando Ari, who was Indonesia's starting goalkeeper under previous coach Shin Tae-yong.

Indonesia has called up 29 players for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers, with 18 naturalized. Notable names include center-back Jay Idzes (Sassuolo, Serie A), Calvin Verdonk (Lille, Ligue 1), Kevin Diks (Monchengladbach, Bundesliga) and striker Ole Romeny (Oxford United, EFL Championship). Mark Klok (Netherlands) is the only player who has no Indonesia origin in the squad.

In the fourth qualifying round, the third and fourth-placed teams from the third round were split into two groups. The top two teams from each group will secure spots in the 2026 World Cup, while the second-placed teams will face off in a two-legged play-off to advance to the intercontinental play-off.

Indonesia are in Group B, facing hosts Saudi Arabia on Oct. 8 and Iraq on Oct. 11.

"Not only the Garuda fans, but the entire nation should stand behind us," Kluivert said, as quoted by Tempo. "We are doing our utmost best to perform at the highest level and to prepare the players as good as possible. Inshallah, we are ready to make the country proud of us."