Head coach of the U-19 national team Dmytro Mykhailenko commented on his team's3-2 victory over Italy in the 3rd round of the Euro 2024 U-19 group stage, which earned the Blue and Yellows a ticket to the semifinals of the tournament.
Dmitry Mikhailenko"I was very calm during the match, because there was a lot of emotion on the field. The guys were very excited, and with the score 2-2, emotions prevailed over common sense. So I forced myself to calm down and watched the game. And we changed what could be changed during the break. We did not succeed in everything.
We realized that it makes no sense for the Italians to play three matches in a row with the same lineup, especially since they have already reached the semifinals and will play on a natural field on the 25th. We saw that six or seven players of the Italian national team were working out in the gym this morning, so everything became clear. But I want to note that yes, there are players in Italy who have a great impact on the game, but the level of those players who came out for the match today is very high.
Unfortunately, Matkevych, Ponomarenko and Vashchenko miss the next match. These are the rules, and they are actually quite strange. Because we had two players miss the first match, against Northern Ireland, which had not played a single match at all, and we had games in the qualifiers and in the elite round. But the conditions are the same for everyone...
The fact that we fulfilled the task of reaching the World Cup and took second place in the group is, of course, a relief for us. Because if we had taken third place, it would have been very difficult for us, given that there are disqualified and injured players. For the next match, we will play at full capacity, but with a sense of accomplishment.
We were very energized by the support here and the support from Ukraine, we really felt it. We realized that we were playing for every Ukrainian. It was from the bottom of our hearts.
I saw the matches of both the French and Spanish national teams. The French are very strong individually, while the Spaniards are more of a team player. I think that we will take on France in the semifinals," Mykhailenko said.
