The famous coach Oleg Fedorchuk told what he expects from the match of the Euro-2024 qualifying cycle between the national teams of England and Ukraine, which will take place tomorrow in London.
Oleg Fedorchuk— "Brentford B" hosted the national team of Ukraine behind closed doors, there was no broadcast of the match, and only two players from the main squad of the English Premier League club played. Why was this match?
— Any game is used to prepare for the opponent, and we know that the giants of world football will play against us. It is worth noting that England also has its own problems. They showed a great first half in the game against the Italians, then for some reason it rained, but they held on for the victory. The English also had a withdrawal, they lost their main left back.
— Can sparring with "Brentford B" be considered indicative? How can you comment on the starting lineups for both halves?
— Friendly games are hard to explain. I don't understand why Yaremchuk is in the starting line-up. This is a mystery to me. I don't think this is the final look of the starting line-up. I believe that Rotan wanted to review many footballers, to confuse the English a little.
After all, we understand that 45 minutes are millimeters. Our main trump card is unexpectedness. It is also important to choose the right strategy for the game. After all, tactics change, and the strategy must be one and correct.
We have incredibly fast football players in the attacking group. Tsygankov and Mudryk will have to show their best qualities, and for this we need to choose the right strategy so that their speed will benefit us.
— Can we say that in the first half the back four came out to play against England from the opening minutes?
— I believe that this is the best option, because Zabarny is not ready. And in the first half, players who have the best conditions and form appeared in the defense.
— Do I understand correctly that you see Svatk in a pair with Matvienko for the match against England?
— Svatok is now calmer than Popov. The defender of "Dnipra-1" always plays at his level and rarely fails the game. And Popov is a mood player. In one match, he can show himself brightly, and in another - make a mistake a few games ahead.
Moreover, Svatok also managed to score a goal in a sparring match with "Brentford B". The defender of "Dnipro-1" is now the leader of his team. Therefore, I believe that we have seen the main back four for the match against England.
— What features of tactics can be judged from this set of football players?
— I believe that we can take points by playing on the counter attack. England are currently the fastest team in Europe. However, the line-up that Rotan fielded in the first half made me think that he was going to fight for the middle of the field. But I don't think it will be successful.
We need to play on the counter attack, because the English played a tiring match against the Italians. We could press at the end of the second half, because the hosts might not have enough strength. I think that Buyalskyi and Yaremchuk were just protested and looked at their current state.
I see Pikhalyonek and Dovbyk at the start. They are trained for the counter-attacking game. We all know Artem's capabilities very well, he can run away and cover the ball with his body, which will be important in the fight against the English central defenders. And Pikhalyonok has close ties with Dovbyk, so he can both give and punch.
— Sudakov came out in the second half and scored a goal. Could this affect Rotan?
- I do not think. If there is an abnormal performance, it shows that the person is in great shape. And this is work efficiency. Sudakov is in good form, he is a player who is at the stage of formation. He's definitely a national team player, but I think he's still a second-half player.
Here we saw England start their meetings. Incredible pace and high speeds. It will be important for us to withstand the initial pressure on our goal.
— Can we seriously analyze the second line-up that came out after the break?
— Full analysis of the game can be done when you are near the field. There it is much better to understand the state of the football player, his dynamics and understanding of the game. I believe that only the coaching staff can draw some conclusions here.
But the analysis requires an experienced coaching bench. And we have a head coach whose boots have not yet dried after the games. He is still a football player. It is a mystery to me how our coaching staff will analyze this match. I think that they will analyze this game like football players.
On the one hand, it's scary for the game against England, and on the other hand, it's very interesting. I'm looking forward to seeing how the players will handle themselves as coaches, because the coaching staff isn't coaches yet. We can predict the game of Klopp and Guardiola, but the game of Rotan for this match is difficult to guess.
— Is it possible to predict the starting line-up for England from this sparring match?
— I believe that there will be certain questions on the offensive line. The defense is also a mystery. Many have not yet developed as a player. The same Svatok did not play for the national team, but only performed for it at the youth level. The defender of "Dnipra-1" does not have established relations with Matvienko.
The only thing that can give some confidence before the game is that Rotan has three lives, just like in the computer game. He has the national team of Ukraine, youth team and "Alexandria". Therefore, it is quite likely that he can and will take risks. He doesn't even have anything to lose in this match. There is a club, there is a youth team, and he helps out the national team of Ukraine. If it works, then it's handsome, and if it doesn't, then he tried to help.
— Yarmolyuk did not play against his national team even for "Brentford B"...
— Damage occurred.
— What is your prediction for the match with England?
— It is difficult to make a prediction for a match with your team. I think that losing by one goal will not be bad. I believe that we will lose minimally. I would like to grab a draw, but the English have shown how they can overcome Italy, and it will be very difficult for us.
— Will the fact that they play in two days on the third have any effect on England?
— That is why I believe that they will want to solve everything in the first half. After all, in the second half of the game, they will start to have problems. Therefore, I hope that our boys can withstand the initial onslaught from the home team.
Artem Zhilinskyi
