On 25 March, the Ukrainian Olympic team will play a sparring match against the Japan U-23 team in preparation for the 2024 Summer Games football tournament. On the eve of the match, the players of the Blue and Yellows shared their thoughts on the confrontation.
Alexander NazarenkoOleksiy Sych (defender): "We are carefully preparing for this match. This is the first game in the history of the Ukrainian Olympic team, and it's great that our first opponent will be such a strong team. The coaches showed us Japan's matches against Argentina and Mali. However, we want to play our own football, to show our character, the character that the Ukrainian people are famous for."
Kirill Fesyun (goalkeeper ): "We will play a strong team. Japan is very organised, with fast players. We are preparing for an interesting game, we want to give our fans positive emotions. Our country really needs them now. This is an important match for us, and it is the one where we start our preparations for the Olympics."
Oleksandr Nazarenko (midfielder): "The Japan U-23 team is a very strong team. We have seen many matches with their participation. The team is very organised, fast and well prepared tactically. But we are also determined to show our best football. We want to give positive emotions to the fans of Ukraine."
The match between Japan U-23 and Ukraine U-23 will take place on 25 March at the Kitakyushu Stadium and will start at 19:15 local time (12:15 Kyiv time).
