Midfielder of the national team of Ukraine, Ruslan Malinovskyi, spoke with media representatives on the eve of the Nations League match against Scotland. The Nations League match between the national teams of Ukraine and Scotland will take place on September 27 in Kraków (start at 9:45 p.m. Kyiv time).
Ruslan Malinovskyi. Photo: uaf.ua— Tomorrow, the national team of Ukraine will face a kind of final. Do you feel pressure on the team?
— It is better to play such matches when the team has a goal, responsibility. We knew that after beating Armenia we would need one result against Scotland. We will play to win tomorrow. We have already played two matches, we need to prepare properly for the next one, draw conclusions from the previous game with the Scots, analyze what we did wrong. We need to play much better tomorrow.
— The match with Scotland in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers was perceived as something incredibly important. However, there is no such excitement among fans nowadays. How do you feel the emotions of people and fans before tomorrow's game?
— There was a different game and different results. The Scots drew conclusions after the first match, changed something. I wouldn't say they played much better in the first half. We lacked completion, the last pass. If we had scored in the first half, the game would have gone differently.
In tomorrow's match, we need to be physically fit for 90 minutes. We have to play stronger in this regard. We need to change things like the Scots did. Tomorrow we have to play a little differently, more aggressively.
Of course, this is already the third match. In every match, the national team of Ukraine goes out and plays for its country, for its fighters, for everyone who worries for us in bad or good times. In football, there are always three results, but the most important thing is to give your all on the field. Therefore, we will give our best and hope for a positive result.
— How will the fact that the match will take place on a neutral field affect tomorrow's game?
— We feel at home in Krakow, so this is not a problem.
