part of a press conference held today in London by acting head coach Ruslan Rotan on tomorrow's Euro 2024 qualifying match with England, the Ukrainian national team's midfielder Oleksandr Zinchenko also took part.
lexander zinchenkoYou are having a great season at Arsenal as one of the team's leaders. Can you pass on this winning mentality to your colleagues in the Ukrainian national team? Is it true that you will be the captain of the national team if Andriy Yarmolenko is unable to play?
- We have a lot of experienced players. Some of them have even more experience than I. So I don't see what I could pass on to the guys this week. We have a lot of leaders in the team, in the locker room, we play as one. The head coach will make the decision about the captain's armband. Whoever is captain tomorrow will fight for each other and for Ukraine.
- How would you assess the generation of this Ukrainian national team? How do you beat England?
- Our goal is to always win. Everyone dreams of getting to the Euros. We understand how strong England is, we know that we have to play one of the best games of our lives. The potential of our team is very high, it has many young players who can produce results. We will fight for each other, for the country, for all the people who will watch the match from the stands and at home. We will definitely play with our heads held high.
- Do you feel any support from your current Arsenal and former Manchester City teammates ahead of the game?
- We are friends, we keep in touch, but there will be no friends on the football field. Bukayo Saka has not yet given me full information about the England starting lineup.
I would like to thank the whole of the UK for supporting Ukraine and refugees. Without your help, the situation would have been extremely difficult.
- Last year, during the confrontation with Scotland, you were emotional, particularly at the press conference. Tomorrow will be the 396th day since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion. What will your emotions be tomorrow, given the more than four thousand Ukrainian fans in the stands? Are you inspired by the Ukrainian soldiers on the front line?
- First of all, I would like to thank the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the opportunity to play, because without the efforts of the Ukrainian army, tomorrow's match would simply not have happened. We are looking forward to playing at Wembley, where there will be a lot of Ukrainian fans, and they will also be watching the match elsewhere. We will try to show our best to give them a smile from the game of the Ukrainian national team.
- Have your emotions changed over the year? Have you heard any stories from your teammates about how the war has affected them?
- I think everyone in Ukraine was affected by the Russian invasion. This terrorist war has literally changed everyone's life. I feel like a family at the national team's location. We play football together, and this is the best feeling. However, these 396 days were a complete nightmare for every Ukrainian - people lost their lives, homes, jobs, everything. So every person in Ukraine has changed during this time.
