Andrii Yarmolenko: "There is no other result for us but first place in the championship"

Dynamo winger Andriy Yarmolenko gave an interview to the club's media after the training session on Friday.

- Andrii, in what mood did Dynamo's players return to training at the club after the national team matches?

- Of course, I wanted to return to the club with a victory, but you need to understand where we played and against whom. I wouldn't mind being in a better mood, but it is what it is. Nothing terrible happened, the whole fight is still ahead. We need to switch from the national team to club affairs and keep working.

- In general, the national team played good football, drew with England and could have scored points in the match against Italy. How did the national team coaching staff assess these matches?

- We got only one point in two matches. I think the coaching staff and all the players wanted more. No one likes to lose, but that's football. The most important thing is to get out of these situations. I think our fans should have no complaints about the dedication. All the guys gave their all on the pitch, but, as I said, you have to understand that the level of the England and Italy teams is almost the highest in the world, so it was not easy for us to face them.

- You hold the record for the number of matches played for the national team. What is the potential of the current national team?

- It's quite high, because the team is relatively young, except for Sydorchuk, Stepanenko and me. The rest of the guys are under 27 years old, many of them play in various European championships, and this is a huge plus for our country, for our national team, because football abroad is a little different.

- At the same time, many of the national team players have known each other for a long time, many have played together, for example, Zabarnyi, Mykolenko, Tsygankov, who come from Dynamo. So, there are no problems with teamwork?

- Of course not, we all know each other well, and this applies not only to Dynamo players, but also to guys from other clubs. Perhaps, during the first training camp with a new head coach, many players who have not worked with Serhiy Stanislavovych have a lot of new things to learn, they need time to understand the coach's requirements. But already at the second training camp, we were more or less doing everything the head coach asked us to do. He even said himself that if you compare our game with Northern Macedonia and England in terms of defence, it's heaven and earth.

- Given that Dynamo has finished its European competitions, will you be playing in the league with double motivation?

- I think we had this double motivation before the start of the championship, because last season we finished in fourth place, which is simply not a place a team like Dynamo can be. All the guys and I are well aware of this, so in the current championship, there is simply no other result for us than first place.

- On Monday, Dynamo will face Vorskla, who have started the season well and have already gained 9 points. Have you already started preparing for the match or do you still need to recover from playing for the national team?

- We only returned to the club's location early yesterday morning. It was a long journey - it took us almost a day to get there, so, of course, we needed to rest a bit. But today we have already trained fully, and the normal work process is underway. We had a theoretical session, analysed our game against Besiktas. So we are preparing as usual, the situation is normal. Unfortunately, many of our players are injured, which is not good, but we need to get out of this situation. We work hard, cheer each other up and prepare for the game with a positive attitude.

- How much will the team miss Sergiy Sydorchuk? You are old friends, did he consult you about his transfer?

- He doesn't need to consult me, because he is an adult. I think that if it wasn't for the war, if his children and wife could be in Kyiv, he wouldn't have transferred anywhere. Serhiy has given more than 10 years to Dynamo, and we have to thank him for that. He is my friend, comrade, Dynamo captain, so, of course, his transfer is a problem for us, because it is always difficult to say goodbye to leaders both on and off the football field. But this is football life. He has made his decision, and we will have to play without him. I wish Serhiy only success and can say the warmest words. We are always in touch with him, I know how much he is always concerned about the club's affairs. We will always be glad to see him.

- Having extensive experience of playing in the European top leagues, do you think it is useful for every Ukrainian footballer to try himself outside the UPL?

- To each his own, all people are different. Perhaps someone, on the contrary, wants to spend his entire career at one club, like, for example, Oleksandr Volodymyrovych. And someone wants to try a different life. Everything is individual. Of course, playing in different European championships is a new experience. If we're talking about Serhii, I think it will help him in his future football life. Even after his career as a player is over, if he continues to associate his professional activities with football. This is an important experience.