Former Ukraine striker Oleksandr Kosyrin shared his impressions of yesterday's match of the 1st round of the group stage of Euro 2024 in Group "E" Romania - Ukraine (3:0).
Alexander Kosyrin. Photo — dumskaya.net- I have read that the Romanian national team is the weakest team in our group. Many specialists and experts were talking about it. Everyone had already decided that we would get three points quite easily. I did not think so. Romanian players are well-equipped technically, they won their group in qualifying for the Euro, conceding very few goals.
- A few days ago, coach Mircea Lucescu, known to us, said that Ukraine is a clear favorite in this confrontation with the Romanian national team. And the Ukraine national team can reach the semifinals of the current continental forum....
- You can say anything you want. Yes, we looked stronger than the Romanian national team in terms of composition and players' qualification, but everything is decided on the soccer field. Indeed, our rival has players who play in the Italian Serie B, mid-table teams of the Turkish championship, average Romanian teams.
- Before the start of the European Championship, the Romanian national team held two friendlies in Bucharest - played with Bulgaria and Liechtenstein. Both matches ended in a draw - 0:0. What does this tell us?
- I would not draw serious conclusions from the results of these matches. Many players act in such matches with their sleeves down. We also played poorly against the Polish national team in Warsaw. These are all control games, part of the preparatory process.
- When you saw our starting lineup, what did you think?
- According to the names, everything was not bad. But the match showed that Serhiy Rebrov made a mistake with the goalkeeper. We all know that since mid-May Lunin has not played in official games because of illness. The first goal was an inaccurate pass from Lunin to Zinchenko. Our left defender just watched whether the ball would come to him or not, and did not engage in tackling. Of course, Stanciu performed everything masterfully.
Everything, for the Romanian national team, turned out well. Then a quick counterattack, and Marin's second goal turned out to be a stray, but it's part of soccer. I will note that Stepanenko lost the ball near the other team's penalty area. Probably, Taras is no longer pulling. The best solution would be to put Brazhko in the supporting zone.
- And why do you think our coaching staff did not make substitutions at halftime, because we played badly and did not once hit the net?
- I think that Serhiy Rebrov believed in the guys and gave them a chance to correct the situation on the pitch. We have already had games when we lost and turned the tide of matches over the past year. The most important thing to say here is that our guys had no emotion.
- Wait, how can you go into a match like this and an arena like this without emotion. Personally, I have been to this stadium and I will say that it is a fantastic arena, where you want to play as well as possible....
- I would agree with that. I was also at the Allianz Arena with my friend Serhiy Bilozor. Remember the game between Bayern and Shakhtar in the Champions League, which ended 7-0. We just took a hot dog, sat in our seats, and the Germans earned the right to a penalty in the 3rd minute, and the referee also removed Oleksandr Kucher.
Today, perhaps, the factor of hot weather also affected. All friendlies we played in the evening, and here the match started at 15:00 local time. It was obvious that the players of both teams were hot. I would also note that we played as if we were guests. Everywhere you look there are only Romanians in the stadium. There were probably 40 thousand of them. Ukrainians were also there, but not in such numbers.
- And still, what led to the final 0:3?
- The first pancake went wrong, as they say. Ours were not like themselves. There were mistakes, and there were a lot of them. We need to analyze everything before the second game against Slovakia. All of us played below their capabilities. Only Sudakov tried to create something up front. Yes, Yaremchuk and Sudakov started to create some spice only in the last 10 minutes of the match. But that, of course, was not enough.
- Igor Surkis and Serhiy Palkin were present at this match. They want to sell their leaders - Shaparenko and Sudakov - to Europe. They put a price tag of 300 million euros for one of them, and the second one will not be sold for less than 70 million euros. What do you think about it?
- One of them has already been sold to Chelsea for 70 million euros, and he can`t prove himself yet. If Mudryk was sold for more adequate money, he would play differently, I think so. Therefore, these price tags for Shaparenko and Sudakov can bring only problems. You can break players psychologically.
- On June 21, our national team will play the second match in the group. In Düsseldorf, the Ukrainian national team will play against the Slovakian team, which defeated the Belgian team. How many changes in the starting lineup should Serhiy Rebrov make to change the mood and game of our national team?
- At least four people need to be changed. The main thing is that our game did not work well in the center of midfield. We did not keep the ball in the other team's half of the field. I think that Brazhko and Malinovskyi can change the game of the Ukraine national team. Without a spark and desire to win - such games are not won.
- And what drinks should the fans of the Ukraine national team drink after such a defeat?
- Those who are in Germany - beer. Those in Ukraine - Validol and various sedatives. I will limit myself to a glass or two of white wine.
