ublished journalist Mykola Nesenyuk commented on the current calendar of football competitions in Ukraine.
Mykola Neseniuk"Modern Norway is perhaps the most athletic nation in the world. In winter sports (alpine and cross-country skiing, biathlon, ski jumping, ice skating), the dominance of the Norwegians, especially after the suspension of the Katsaps from the competition, is impressive. And it's not because they have long winters and have nothing to do but skiing and skating. Norwegians are not lagging behind in all other sports either. Who is the best football player in the world today? The Norwegian Holland, who scores goals by the handful for Manchester City!
These are all obvious facts that do not require confirmation or discussion. I want to draw attention to something else. To their football, which gives the world superstars like Holland. Do you know when the football championship starts in Norway? April 10! In this richest country with one of the highest living standards in the world, no one thinks of starting to play football in February when it is cold and uncomfortable in the stands. No one insists that players of Norwegian football clubs freeze themselves and freeze the spectators "in the interests of the national team" as in Ukraine. And what is interesting is that the results of the Norwegian teams, both the national team and the clubs in European competitions, are about the same as ours!
For some reason, rich and successful Norwegians are not bothered by the beginning of the football season in the spring and its end in the fall. No one there is shouting about the need for a "European" fall-spring schedule that is suitable for countries where it is warm in winter and not suitable for countries where it is cold in winter. This is because they are smart.
And what about us? Why do we start the football championship in July, interrupt it in December, and resume it in February or March? Why in the warmest month of June do our football players not delight the audience with their game on mild evenings, but go abroad to "prepare for the season" and then freeze in December and February at empty stadiums? Where is the logic?
Let me remind you that Ukrainians achieved all their international football successes when our season was like the Norwegians' now - starting in April and ending in the fall. "Not to mention the "triumph" of Brazilian Shakhtar in the last UEFA Cup in 2009, which is an exception that only confirms the harmfulness of our football's transition to the "winter calendar." What does the training of a dozen Brazilians wearing the uniform of a Ukrainian team abroad have to do with the wanderings of Ukrainian football teams that have been forced to play football not in summer when it is warm, but in winter when it is cold for four decades?
So maybe we should take an example from the Norwegians? They are definitely not stupider than us!" Neseniuk wrote on his Facebook page.
