The reporting week passed under the sign of national teams, and the main topic for discussion was the Euro 2024 qualifying match in Wroclaw, where the Ukrainian national team shared points with the formidable England - 1:1.
Sergei RebrovANXIOUS EXPECTATIONS
Since 5 September, when the Ukrainian national team players started their preparatory training camp in Poland, this story has dominated the pages of the national sports media. Naturally, the expectations were alarming. We had a match against one of the strongest teams on the planet and the leader of the group, who had won the previous four games with a total score of 15:1. And then there were personnel problems, which Serhiy Rebrov faced.
Mykola Shaparenko and Eduard Sobol are out due to injuries, Andriy Yarmolenko and Oleksandr Tymchyk are not in the squad for the same reason, and Ruslan Malinovsky, who recently changed clubs, is simply out of shape - he was not even called up for the training camp. In addition, a number of players at the start of the season had a clear lack of game practice. Vitaliy Mykolenko played only one match, Artem Dovbyk and Mykhailo Mudryk are substitutes for their clubs, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Taras Stepanenko are just getting into the season after injuries.....
"There are problems at most positions... More than half of the squad has not played much more than half of the available playing time. Additionally, Rebrov was left without at least three players of the main squad" (Ua.tribuna.com, 07.09.23).
According to the media, close to optimal form at the start of the season among our foreign national teams demonstrated only Ilya Zabarny from English "Bournemouth" and Viktor Tsygankov, who became a real leader of "Girona".
"I believe that Viktor is now the best Ukrainian footballer. Tsygankov shows good results in his club, now he must confirm this in the national team matches," coach Oleh Fedorchuk said about one of the aforementioned ex-Dynamo players (Sport-express.ua, 08.09.23).
There was no doubt about the goalkeeper issue - the majority agreed that they should bet on Heorhiy Buschan.
"Buschan has now regained a good playing form and returned to the conditions he had before the injury. Zhora became one of the heroes of the Kiyan in the matches against Besiktas and Aris. He really makes the team strong.
We should also remember that Buschan has the experience of the main goalkeeper in the Ukrainian national team in qualification for Euro 2020 and in the final part of this tournament. Psychologically, it will not be a problem for him to go to such famous opponents as Italy and England", - reads the material by Sergey Tishchenko (Dynamo.kiev.ua, 05.09.23).
Thus, Serhiy Rebrov was faced with a difficult task - in the shortest possible time it was necessary to determine the optimal combinations and if possible to bring to a common denominator the conditioning of players, for which Dynamo fitness coach Vitaliy Kuliba is now responsible.
"The Ukraine national team should at least not compromise in physical readiness, because if you are not on a par with the supervisor physically, then you can't expect anything good, and the whole coaching plan for the game immediately breaks down," former Ukraine national team player Oleh Shelaev emphasised this important aspect (Footboom1.com, 07.09.23).
As for the predictions for the game, they were very restrained. Weighing up the odds for and against, some journalists even promoted the idea of playing against England with a conditionally second team: they say that there is no chance against the clear favourite of the group anyway, so it is better to focus on the game with Italy, which will be held on 12 September and in which the fate of the second place in the group may be decided.
Here's what Oleksandr Zvirk wrote about it:
"It would be good to save our strength against a stronger but less important opponent. We need as much as we need for the second match. That's why Ukraine historically plays better in other matches than in the first" (Sportarena.com, 05.09.23).
However, there were no panic moods either. In particular, most experts agreed that our team also has its own trump cards and it is quite capable of stopping the English. As an example - a quote from another ex-Ukrainian national team player Yevhen Levchenko:
"Maddeningly, for the quality of the game we are doing, but for the reason of fighting and running it is possible to try to give a fight to the favourite. You can always find a sprinkle of defence in the opponent's defence. I find it hard to believe in the victory of the Ukrainian national team. At the same time, I absolutely do not want to be a pessimist. If we manage to defeat the first quick attacks of the English, and we will be able to play compactly, especially when defending their gates, then the "blue and yellow" may be able to secure a draw" (Bookmaker-ratings.com.ua, 08.09.23).
Also, repeatedly in various previews for the match was traced faith in the coaching talent of Sergei Rebrov, who, according to the media, should have taken into account the mistakes of the first match with the English (0:2 at Wembley six months ago under Ruslan Rotan). It was, in particular, about the insufficient assistance of wingers to wing-backs and the abuse of short passes when coming out of defence.
"Then we catastrophically lacked a plan B for the eventuality that we will not be able to retain the nil-nil draw. I want to believe that the current head coach has one," Mykhaylo Tsyruk suggested on the eve of the game (Khsport.ua, 09.09.23).
BORING REALITIES
The match in Wroclaw, as expected, turned out to be very difficult and tense. From the first minutes, England seized the initiative, preventing our players from getting a hold of the ball. As aptly defined by the author of one of the materials about the match, the British clearly tried to crush the Ukrainians with authority. And in these minutes, as many sources noted, it seemed that our team was about to falter. But it did not happen.
"The Ukrainian national team players were very good at absorbing this pressure. For half of the first half, England only once shot on goal, but that shot was blocked by the defenders" (Footballhub.ua, 09.09.23).
Undoubtedly, the incredible atmosphere at the stadium in Wroclaw played an important role here, as absolutely all publications wrote about it:
"The support of the audience this evening was hot and fiery. The fans chanted patriotic chants typical for Ukrainian stadiums, nadihayuschih Rebrov's team as a full-fledged 12th player" (Footclub.com.ua, 09.09.23).
"The support of our team by the stands is one of the best moments of the game" (Depo.ua, 09.09.09.23).
But of course, purely football nuances come first. For the media it is obvious: Rebrov "calculated" the opponent, perfectly preparing the team to withstand the initial onslaught, to bind the opponent with low blocks and to activate in front, when he slightly slows down.
However, our coach clearly did not make a mistake with the tactics for the match as a whole, which is noted by almost all sources.
"The head coach of the Ukrainian national football team was not offending with his heart, but with his mind. In some ways he probably stepped on the throat of his own song, but he managed to achieve the most important thing in football - the result.
Ukraine played with a different number, tried to play compactly, disciplined and quickly move from one phase of the game to the next. The defensive line was forced as much as possible. Stepanenko often dropped to the centre-backs' area, while being able to clean up Konopli's flank, Zinchenko often assisted Mikolenko....
And the fact is this: one of the best football teams in the world created two scoring chances near our goal during the whole match, while our team created one near their goal", - we read on the Sport.ua website (09.09.23).
An interesting nuance: Rebrov himself said after the match that his initial plan did not work. The coach intended to play more aggressively and sharper in attack. Nevertheless, it's hard not to give credit to the Ukraine national team at least for the realisation - the blue-and-yellow team used their first chance at the opponent's goal, organising a swift counterattack.
"If we look at Zinchenko's goal, the first thing to pay attention to is Sudakov's pass to the right to Tsygankov.
The next key episode is how the opponents fell for Tsygankov's trademark fake move, when he almost starts to move to his left, but at the same moment he gives up the pace to his partner's run.
Further - the work of Konopli and the coaching staff. While everything is clear about Juhim (his head is up), Rebrov's staff may raise questions about what they did. It's simple - they forced even in such a scenario (when you have to fight back) to attack someone else's carnies. Four players were running under Konopli's pass at the same time", - Dmytro Vatras savours the main moment of the match for us (Ua.tribuna.com, 09.09.23).
The press also credit Sergei Rebrov for the substitutions: Serhiy Krivtsov clearly looked more reliable than Mykola Matvienko, Serhiy Sidorchuk relieved Taras Stepanenko, who was tired of burning out the centre of the pitch, and Vitaliy Buyalskyy noticeably refreshed the game up front, constantly pulling opponents onto himself. All of these moves by Rebrov contributed to England failing to mount a final assault.
As for the individual contribution of our players to the overall success, the press first of all notes Oleksandr Zinchenko, Efim Konoplya, Taras Stepanenko and Viktor Tsygankov. Mikhail Mudryk, Roman Yaremchuk and Artem Dovbik played below their capabilities - which, however, could be expected, given their scanty playing practice in the new season. But, as journalist Serhiy Lukyanenko correctly pointed out, football is a collective game, and it can't all depend on one or two individuals:
"When someone has problems, the team comes to the rescue. And it played with the British as good as it should" (Xsport.ua, 10.09.23).
In our case, the team compensated for the insufficiently productive game in attack with reliability in defence. Almost all Ukrainian defensive players received high marks from the media. Starting with Buschan, who should be thanked for his cool save on 59 minutes - when our goalkeeper managed to deflect the threat after Sak's shot:
"Only Buschan's reaction saved the yellow-blues from a goal. The Dynamo keeper managed to reach the ball and put it into the goal frame, after which it flew into the field".
Perhaps, the only moment, for which the Ukraine national team should be criticised, is the return goal of the English. Here, by the way, many experts and journalists focus on the fact that Voker's goal after a brilliant pass from Kane at 50 metres is not an individual, but a collective miscalculation of our players, and in all lines. Yes, Mikolenko did not have time to cover the English defender who rushed behind him, but what did the rest of the players do?
"Mudryk, who did not curve wide... And Yaremchuk underperformed against Kane - Roman allowed him to calmly give him the pass", - the journalists of the Football24.ua website (10.09.23) point out the important components.
However, this moment did not really spoil the whole picture.
"Ukraine's national team has exceeded expectations in the game with the favourite of the group," summarises Boris Sorokin. - England conceded for the first time in five years, England lost points in the group for the first time, England broke their winning streak against Ukraine. "The Blues played a good match and took one point - the result and the quality of the game were pleasantly disappointing" (Ua-football.com, 09.09.23).
INTERIM CONCLUSIONS
So, the first September exam of the Ukraine national team, according to the press, passed almost perfectly. It is not only about the result of a particular match, but also about the fact that the team under the new coach has made significant progress. This applies to all aspects - tactical preparation, organisation of the game and clear geometry in structures, discipline and dedication, character, attitude and ability to tolerate.
That is the work of the coaching staff is evident. We can say that we can already see quite clear outlines of "Rebrov's national team", which looks much more balanced, coherent and interesting than its predecessor.
"For the Ukrainian team this nichiya is equal to peremozi, and not only in the tournament plani, - writes, for example, Eugene Savchuk. -. A much more important factor is the fact that against the leader of the group Serhiy Rebrov's team acted as a single mechanism. Not without failures, of course. At the same time, the team did not collapse under the initial pressure of the English, when they scored, did not instinctively, with thirsty knees to play "bus" football, trying to save the advantage in the tie at any price. And did not bend when they conceded a goal in response, and actually in the box, trying to periodically impose their will on their opponents" (Footboom1.com, 09.09.23).
"The course of events on the football pitch in Wrocław demonstrated that the Ukraine national team is capable of playing, even if not in the most impressive style, but with an emphasis on the level playing field with the inverted favourites," the authors of Football.ua website share their conclusions (Football.ua (10.09.23).
The journalist of Tribuna Iryna Kozyupa also writes that this Ukrainian national team is capable of giving a fight to any opponent:
"We have everything for this - qualified coach, strong motivation, footballers who play in top championships, a player for whom to pay 100 million. All this gives the optimism that the team can go to the next level of its evolution. Like in the good times of Andriy Shevchenko and his Italian coaching staff" (Ua.tribuna.com, 10.09.23).
At the same time, the media make it clear that it would be nice to see Rebrov's team playing more creative football, including in matches against strong opponents:
"Acting so cautiously on a permanent basis is obviously not what is expected from Rebrov, but against England for such circumstances, the strategy of streamlining has proved to be true. 1:1 - the result, which still leaves optimistic hopes for the Euros" (Ua.tribuna.com, 09.09.23).
That is, the media representatives are not inclined to view the draw with England through the prism of rose-coloured glasses. Yes, everything is very good so far. Especially considering that the Italian national team, which is considered our main competitor in the fight for second place, suffered a loss in Northern Macedonia (1:1) and is still three points behind Ukraine with a game to spare.
From the point of view of tournament strategy, the situation is promising. But now we need, as they say, to consolidate the past - in Milan, on 12 September, in a match with traditionally uncomfortable for us Italy. After that, as Igor Yurich writes, we will be able to draw some concrete conclusions:
"This meeting could be the moment of truth. Not in terms of an answer to the question of who will be the other in the group: of course, it is still early. But about the question itself.
Can we today link Italy's struggle to qualify for the Euro? Can we put this very question to Ruba, or, if you like, to Rebrovy? To be or not to be in this fight? In fact, everything is just starting again. The poor result against England was just an order. The next is a tale with an unknown ending.
But believe me, the fact that it is still unknown is a great achievement in our time. When Ukrainian football survives. And practically any supervisor in the European Cup for our clubs can become a non-selective bar'ier" (Ua-football.com, 10.09.23).
OTHER ASPECTS OF FOOTBALL LIFE
Sidorchuk transfer. On the 5th of September Dynamo Kyiv announced that one of the leading players of the team Serhiy Sidorchuk will continue his career in Belgian Westerlo. The news received a wide resonance, which is not surprising. If the departure of Denys Garmash, who has not been in the squad, was predicted long ago, Sidorchuk has been playing in Dynamo stably and has been wearing the captain's armband for the last six years.
The media emphasise: the parting was absolutely civilised - the initiative of the transfer came from Sidorchuk, and the club, taking into account his merits, went along with it.
This, in particular, was told by Dynamo president Igor Surkis, whose commentary to the YouTube channel TaToTake was picked up by numerous resources:
"Dynamo will not make a lot of money on this transfer. But the right is not in the cost of the player, but in the fact that I could not refuse the person, who served the team faithfully and truthfully for ten years and was its captain. Sergiy has earned the right to try himself in European football. And we have grown his replacement - there is young Brazhko, experienced Andriyevskyi and Shepeliev. All parties will be satisfied" (Ukrfootball.ua, 05.09.23).
When discussing Sidorchuk's transfer, journalists pay tribute to the footballer, who played 327 matches for Dynamo, winning 11 trophies (he became the champion three times, took the Cup and the Super Cup of Ukraine four times each). In particular, Mykola Kizilov calls him a Ukrainian Jorginho, "who had a bright head, but never met his Mauricio Sarri and could not realise his potential. But he became a local legend" (Ua.tribuna.com, 06.09.23).
Dynamo ultras also said a very warm farewell to Sidorchuk.
"For fans Sergiy is really close person, who is always ready to go to dialogue and help in hard times. In the worst hour for our country Sergiy helps the representatives of the white-blue movement at the front and the entire Ukrainian army.
Thank you very much for everything, Captain! We wish you further success in your career and will always be glad to see you in Kiev. See you later", - Sport.ua quotes the fans' statement (06.09.23).
In short, the majority of publications and comments about Sidorchuk's transfer have a note of sadness in them. As Artem Frankov correctly summarised, a player of the epoch and a leader in all respects has left Dynamo. But, on the other hand, everyone has his time. And now the media will wait with interest to see how Volodymyr Brazhko, who had a great season on loan at Zorya and received a lot of advances from the press, will prove himself as the main support player.
Melgosa's debut. In the course of the reporting week the "younger" teams played their matches. On the 8th of September, the players of the Ukraine U-21 national youth team played for the first time under the leadership of Unai Melgosa, losing to their peers from Germany - 0:2.
The press assessed the game ambiguously, drawing attention to both positive moments and a number of problems.
Journalist Igor Zvik, in particular, writes that while we played the "base", the team looked very decent and in no way inferior to the famous rival:
"We had a good structure in the centre of the pitch and did not allow opponents to walk around our penalty area. Our "youth" acted compactly and well against the opponent, and also we really had a lot of possession...Who knows what the match would have ended, if Melgosa did not let everyone play, and introduced young blood in the second half" (Sportanalytic.com, 09.09.23).
In turn, journalists of the website Football24 pay more attention to the flaws in the game of the renewed "youth":
"Chimalo individual mistakes, which today became fatal, and a lot of gostroty near the gates of the supervisor - problems before the official matches in the U-21 team is not brakuyu. Against Germany, the starting 20 minutes were the best" (Football24.ua, 08.09.23).
In general, so far there are questions about Melgosa's team. And the first answers to them, obviously, will be heard after the starting match in the Euro-2025 U-21 qualification - on 12 September against Northern Ireland.
Czech voyage of Moroz's team. Last week was the most intense in terms of game load for the Ukraine U-18 national team. Yuriy Moroz's team took part in the traditional Václav Jezek tournament, where they played three matches. In the first one they lost to the USA team, conceding two goals in the end (2:3), but then "corrected" by beating Turkey (2:0) and Slovakia (3:2).
As Yuriy Moroz noted, the Czech tournament was considered by the coaching staff, first of all, as an opportunity to test the candidates for the team:
"The players have grown up, they play in their clubs. New people are emerging. We want to reward new schemes, to see the level of managers on the international arena" (Uaf.ua, 04.09.23).
In general, the results of the tournament for the U-18 national team can be assessed positively. And the press pays tribute to the Dynamo football school, whose players formed the backbone of Moroz's team (eight out of 20). By the way, the goals for Ukraine in the Czech Republic were scored mainly by Dynamo representatives. Vladyslav Kalin scored three times, Matvei Ponomarenko twice and Vitaliy Lobko once.
Viktor Zhuravlev
