Former Dynamo Kyiv footballer Taras Mykhalyk shared his impressions of yesterday's 3-1 win over Malta for the Ukrainian national team.
- Statistics show that the Ukrainian national team is worse in the second of the doubleheaders. Serhii Rebrov's team can't take credit for the start of yesterday's match either. There was a lack of confidence in their abilities, the ball did not obey, and they conceded an annoying goal when they allowed the home team to break through the centre.
- After that, did you have any fears for the final result?
- No, although my worries began to show. And it is not known when we would have reached the breaking point, if not for the Maltese goal. But it is not for nothing that they say: luck is with the stronger. The hosts panicked, and our team played an exemplary second half. They took control of the ball, combined quickly, and increased their intensity. In short, they played with class.
- This means we can win doubles when we really need to.
- The September matches with England and Italy cannot be compared to the matches with the North Macedonians and the Maltese. But the main thing is that in a difficult moment we survived and got such valuable six points. And there was no time for a spectacular game.
- Give an assessment of the actions of those players who did not start in the match against the North Macedonians.
- Vanat had some drop-offs, but he is more comfortable at the forefront of the attack than on the wing. Karavaev played at his level. Sydorchuk did a lot of rough work, although he is to blame for the missed ball. As, by the way, were the stops and the goalkeeper.
- Finally, Mudryk opened the scoring for the national team. What can you say about him?
- Recently, he has been criticised not only by experts but also by fans. Mykhailo has proved that he knows how to hold his own. With every match he becomes more and more useful for the national team. It is important that both at the club level and in the national team he is supported by his managers. This means he will progress faster. His debut goal for the national team will also give him confidence.
- Everything goes to the point that in November the fate of a direct ticket to Euro 2024 will be decided in the battle between Ukraine and Italy, and our team will be satisfied only with victory.
- Our guys have repeatedly proved that the more serious the opponent, the better they play. Moreover, with Tsygankov's return to action, the Ukrainian team will become stronger. I don't consider the Italians to be favourites.