Oleh Fedorchuk: "Now it seems that it is Chelsea's Kabaev, not Mudryk"

Famous coach and now recognized expert Oleh Fedorchuk shared his thoughts on the defeat of the Ukrainian national team by Albania (1-2) in the opening match of the Nations League of the 2024/25 season.

"Apparently, the main ideologue of rolling ball football is Rebrov's assistant [Vicente Gomez]."

- Oleh Viktorovych, why did you fail in the match with Albania? What is happening with the Ukrainian national team?

- I wouldn't say that something special is happening, it's just a trend that started six months or a year ago. It so happened that the leaders of the national team play a medium passing game designed for combination football. This is the style of Barcelona, which was 10 years ago under Guardiola.

Shaparenko, Sudakov, Yaremchuk received the ball all the time with their backs to the goal. I even got the impression that they had a task to collect a large number of assists without advancing. But now top players should be able to play facing the goal.

- Who is to blame for the fact that our players don't play like that?

- No one can be blamed here. Apparently, the main ideologue of rolling the ball is Rebrov's assistant [Vicente Gomez]. But we have a clear overkill with the fact that we are moving away from the goal, not towards it. The result suffers because of this. You can't win without movement.

In the 80s, I listened to Lobanovsky's lectures. Valery Vasilyevich said: "The class of a team is determined by the number of attacks of maximum power." This means that the maximum number of players, about six, should participate in the attack at maximum speed and carry out from 12 to 18 attacks at this speed.

Yesterday, the Ukrainian national team had no speed at all! Our coaches declared that the League of Nations is very important to us as a safety net for the World Cup. In the last 15 minutes of the match with Albania, the coaches remembered that they needed a result, began to make substitutions, but they ruined the game that was beginning to take shape. Most players need 10-15 minutes to catch the rhythm of the game. Our substitutions unbalanced the game. Malinowski made a mistake right away, Pikhalenok - three times in a row.

Even the Albanians' tired players were much more effective than our fresh ones. This suggests that they caught the rhythm of the game.

- But why is there no result, because there was one under Shevchenko?

- The Ukrainian national team is playing harder than it can play. We need to play simpler, as the Swedes, Norwegians, Austrians, and Swiss do.

- Were Dovbyk and Mudryk sorely missed in the match against Albania?

- Not that they would have helped, given their current condition. Dovbyk is in a clear crisis, and Mudryk is simply unpredictable. I would compare him to an Iranian missile that doesn't know where it will go. Mudryk can disappear or appear in the middle of a match. He is not yet stable.

Ratings for the players of the national team of Ukraine for the match with Albania

Goalkeeper - Trubin, Sofascore 6.7

- I agree with his assessment. He helped out, but he conceded two goals, and in such a game it is a lot.

Right back - Konoplya, Sofascore 7.5

- I disagree with this one. How can you get a high score if you fail to cope with your direct duties - defense? Even though Konoplya scored a goal, he was involved in our conceded goals. There was a continuous draft on his flank and it was through his area that the Albanians found their game. I'll give Konoply a 6.5.

Center back - Zabarnyi, Sofascore 7.1

- I consider Zabarnyi to be the best player of the Ukrainian national team in yesterday's match. I will give him 7.4. He took part in the selection, even in the attack he had promising moments during a corner. He was our most stable player in the game against Albania.

Center back - Matvienko, Sofascore 6.7

- I agree with the assessment here. Matvienko is also to blame for the missed goals, because he and Mykolenko were guarding one player. Matvienko also took little part in the organization of attacks, although this is his advantage.

Left back - Mykolenko, Sofascore 7.2

- I disagree with the assessment. Mykolenko, like Konoplya, was active up front, but played poorly at the back. The second goal was entirely on his conscience. I think Vitaliy has not yet gained optimal conditions. I give him 6.8. This is the maximum.

Supporting midfielder - Brazhko, Sofascore 6.5

- I agree with the assessment. Brazhko is in a slump right now. He looks 20% weaker than at the Euros. He won't finish the game at Dynamo. Something is going on in his body.

Right winger - Tsygankov, Sofascore 6.7

- The assessment is fair. He played little, missed the preparation for the season due to illness. In the match against Albania, Tsygankov did not take the game upon himself much and was remembered for only one good, creative pass and a solo pass. Yesterday Viktor played below his level, I expected much more. But here we must make a discount for his long absence from official matches due to injury and illness.

Central midfielders: Sudakov, Sofascore 6.7; Shaparenko, Sofascore 7.0

- I would give them both the lowest score of 6.0! They were the designers of our toothless attacking play. They are Rebrov's thought engineers, the coach relies on them, but if we continue to play like this, we will be in a lower division in a year. Attacking players who do not threaten the goal is not even funny. Sudakov and Shaparenko slowed down the game and did not escalate it at all.

Right winger - Kabaev, Sofascore 7.3

- I would give him a slightly lower score - 7.0. He was the second most active after Zabarnyi. Given that it was his debut game for the national team, he looked pretty decent. Kabayev is the only player in the Ukrainian national team who met our team's objectives with his aggression.

He played every episode to the end. Kabayev was like Albanian players who fought with their last strength. Today it seems that Kabaev is a Chelsea player, not Mudryk.

Center forward - Yaremchuk, Sofascore 6.6

- In the presence of Dovbyk, Yaremchuk should not have played. His game should have been completely different. They were looking for ways to the Albanian goal through him, but Roman was not in the penalty area all the time. It seems that the Albanians had mined the penalty area, and he was afraid to appear there. I had to write "No mines. You can come in!" I've long noticed that when there is a lot of running work, Yaremchuk simply dissolves on the field. We give him a 6.6 rating .

Substitutes: Yarmolenko, Sofascore 6.6; Pikhalenok, Sofascore 7.1; Vanat Sofascore, 6.5; Zinchenko, Sofascore 6.6; Malinowski, Sofascore 6.9

- I would not single out Pikhalenko here. Yes, he was aiming for a shot, but it was not effective. I give 6.0 to all the substitutes. They did not add anything to our team's game, and this is exactly what was required of them.

Head coach - Serhii Rebrov

- I give Rebrov a 6.0. He failed to convince the players that they need to play for the result. We played as if we were higher in class than the Albanians. But I didn't notice it in the Euros. We are on the same level as them. Ukraine wanted to demonstrate that they were better at holding the ball, but most teams in modern football don't even fight for that.

"If the coach doesn't draw conclusions, then the one who appointed him should draw conclusions. Let it be a warning."

- Which team in our group do you think is the strongest?

- I believe that Ukraine remains the strongest team in the group. But, in terms of psychological state, Georgia is now in first place. We need to strengthen a lot to pull the team out of this hole we dug ourselves into after the match with Romania. We had a similar game with Albania.

But Rebrov persistently continues to call up the same players who failed in the European Championship. It seems that we succeeded at the Euros and the coach is happy with everything. I don't understand the call-ups of Sydorchuk, Stepanenko, Yarmolenko, and this Taloverov model. This is the result we get at the Euros.

- Do you think Rebrov will draw conclusions in the match against the Czech Republic, and will there be a more aggressive game ahead?

- The Czechs play twice as rationally as the Albanians and in a more forceful manner. Controlling the ball has never been a priority for them. They are Eastern European Englishmen. I don't know how the game will go, but if I had been asked before the start of the tournament, I would have said that the Czechs are the most uncomfortable opponents for us.

Will Rebrov draw conclusions? If the coach doesn't draw conclusions, then the one who appointed him should. Let it be a warning. Coaches also need to be shaken up sometimes.

Andriy Piskun