The main football topics of the first fall week in Ukraine were the performances of the national teams. The national team started with an unexpected defeat in the next draw of the Nations League, while the youth team continued its steady progress along the qualifying path for the continental championship.
Photo — UAFAlbanian lesson
At the start of the new League of Nations draw, several rather unexpected results were recorded at once, and sometimes just sensational.
In particular, the French national team - seemingly the favorite of any tournament at any level - lost 1-3 at home to Italy, which had suffered a fiasco at the European Championship final in July. The Czech Republic's 1-4 defeat at the hands of Georgia was even more helpless. The current champions of the Old World, the Spaniards, failed to overcome the resistance of Serbia - 0:0, and the Norwegians also lost points in Kazakhstan (also 0:0)...
So, in many leading football countries, the League of Nations is not taken too seriously - as a kind of substitute for friendly matches.
The attitude of the Ukrainian national team should be radically different. For us, this is a real way to major competitions. It was through the League of Nations that the Blue and Yellows made it to Euro 2024. The new prospect is a ticket to the 2026 World Cup, so the national team's attitude to the current draw must be extremely responsible.
This, in short, was the leitmotif of head coach Serhiy Rebrov's speeches on the eve of the start of the new qualifying campaign. These assurances were accompanied by comments in the press. Like the one published by the website Khsport.ua.
"If the big teams perceive the League of Nations as a second-rate tournament and an opportunity for experimentation, in our case everything is completely different ," journalist Mykhailo Tsiruk emphasized . The first and foremost is that it is a way to get to the World Cup. The second is the need to show a reaction to the failed European Championship. After the disappointment of the continental championship in Germany, people will want a result that will show that the last place in the group was a fluke and that our team is still good" (Khsport.ua, 2.09.24).
According to the editorial board, this tournament should be important for Rebrov personally, under whose leadership "the team has almost never won from a position of strength. Here, the opponents allow it: Albania, the Czech Republic and Georgia are from the category of those who can and should be defeated..."
Saturday's 1-2 defeat by Albania, of course, surprised the authors of such posts and, probably, most fans.
"There was simply no straw to grasp in search of positive moments," Football.ua complained (8.09.24).
If in most cases, after a difficult start to the game, the Blue and Yellows improved the situation after the break, this time, unfortunately, everything ended in our favor, despite Konoplya's spectacular goal at the very beginning of the second half.
Unfortunately, the goal was too calming for our players, who quickly allowed the opponent to get back into the game and then take the lead. In the future, it was not possible to overcome the Albanians, who caught their game and courage.
"According to the names of the main players, according to the names of the reserves who came out to reinforce, this team should look much, much more sane in the ball control component," writes Footboom1.com (08.09.24). But not this time - the Albanians "cut" more meaningful combinations during two halves than the hosts.
According to certain key statistical indicators (possession of the ball, assists), the Ukrainians outperformed the opponent. However, for example, in terms of shots on target - five against three in favor of the Albanians...
Observers note a significant difference in the tone of Dynamo's players (who have a fairly high-quality European Cup qualifier behind them) and the rest of the teams - the Miners and legionnaires. They emphasize the lack of efficiency in attack, directly in front of the opponent's goal, and in defense when the opponent plays standard positions. They refuse to accept the absence of the injured Dovbyk, Mudryk and Popov as an excuse.
Of course, the specifics of the national team coach's job make it difficult to work on mistakes in a team that comes together sporadically. But, as observers note, Rebrov does not resort to personnel revolutions, and the players are well known to the coach and each other, which should contribute to the team's chemistry.
"The Ukrainians lacked movement between the lines. The Albanians closed in the middle block, and their opponents sterilely rolled the ball back and forth," states Oleksa Byk (Football24.ua, September 8, 24).
His colleague from Ua-football.com Vladyslav Lychyk writes in unison with him: "The Ukrainians frankly lacked a clear structure in building their attacks. Rebrov's wards reached the last third of the field of the nominal guests, but then everything went down to chaotic passes and headers..." (7.09.24).
We have to admit that in the match with Albania, our team for some reason allowed the opponent to impose his favorite model of the game with a lot of joints and riding duels, while the trump cards of the national team of Ukraine - tactical intelligence and speed - this time remained unused.
It is easy to predict that this circumstance surprised many viewers of the game against the Albanians.
After all, Serhiy Rebrov and his players are well aware of the realities in which they have to defend the honor of a country embroiled in a bloody war. Almost every one of the "blue and yellows" does not forget to mention this point in their communication with the press - as a very good incentive to give their all on the field. All of them must also realize their own responsibility, using the credit of trust from the fans.
"We have faith in the national team, we believe in its potential and the relationship between the players. We also expect character from everyone in the camp, both players and coach. "Ukraine needs Rebrov to rebuild the outdated formats and start building a modern team," Artem Rossinsky called on the eve of the match against Albania (News.obozrevatel.com, 6.09.24). " Now we want to understand the logic of calling up players, what will be the motivation for the Nations League and will it be for Ukraine as the main tournament of the fall or just as official training?"
The Ukrainian national team has at least five more matches ahead of them to provide convincing answers. So we shouldn't overdramatize the situation. The next test is on Tuesday.
Let's see how the team reacts to an unfortunate, but not fatal, setback. At the Euro final in Germany, they beat the Slovaks on character. Now they will face an equally difficult confrontation with the Czechs, who, in turn, received an even more painful slap in Georgia...
One hundred percent "youth"
If the first team has just started in the new campaign, the youth team has returned to the competition, which it started with the maximum achievement in the previous six matches. The opponent in the seventh game was Serbia, which at the start was considered one of our direct competitors in the fight for a ticket to the Euro. However, having squandered a lot of points, the Balkans put themselves in a difficult situation: in order to hope for at least second place in the group, they had to defeat the Blue and Yellows.
"Serbia is a strong team, it will try to do everything possible to achieve the desired result," said the head coach of the Ukrainian team Unai Melgosa on the eve of the match (Uaf.ua, 05.09.24). Such matches are important for the development of the players' careers."
Preparation for the meeting in hospitable Riga was complicated for the Ukrainians not only by the fact that the team last met six months ago. Many of the U21 players did not have a proper rest in the summer, defending the colors of the state at the Olympics in France. Some, such as Brazhko, the captain and undoubted leader of the youth team, are already in demand by Serhiy Rebrov's staff. However, the opponents did not do without personnel problems. To be more precise, they started a rebuild in the midst of qualifying, radically updating the squad.
Despite this, it was the Serbs who opened the scoring in the 7th minute.
"The reason for this was a rebound, because it cannot be called a shot, from Bazhdar, who was standing in front of the goalkeeper during a header from Serafimovic at the end of a corner kick from the right flank. Obviously, it was offside, but Italian referees led by Simone Sozza are used to working exclusively with VAR in Serie A, so they no longer pay attention to such "trifles" on their own," Football.ua (06.09.24) ironicallycommented on the referee's dubious decision to score the goal .
The Ukrainians responded with an active game in the opponent's half of the field, realizing a significant game and territorial advantage, trying to break through the tight defense. According to analysts, it is important that our young men did not deviate from the coaching plan, did not lose focus on individual actions - they demonstrated a collective game, imposed their conditions on the opponent around the perimeter of the field, sometimes resorted to non-standard actions. One of them was Batagov's long pass behind the defenders to Voloshyn. The latter irresistibly scored in the bottom corner - 1:1.
"This goal gave our guys confidence in their own abilities, they could even go ahead, but Voloshyn's shot from outside the penalty area was parried by Lieskic in a jump," Vladyslav Pryhoda, author of Ua-football.com, recalls the end of the first half (6.09.24).
The Kyiv Dynamo player was a direct participant in the next goal episode, which brought us the decisive goal.
"In the 56th minute, Kvasnytsia made his way to the penalty area with the ball, passed it to Voloshyn, Nazar scored, but the goalkeeper deflected it in front of him. Kvasnytsia was the first to finish, but in the struggle he ended up on the turf - the referee awarded a penalty. Yarmolyuk put Ukraine ahead from the spot," Oleh Vasylyshyn records the circumstances of the seventh consecutive victory of our national team (Football24.ua, September 6, 24).
Thus, having won another three points, Melgosa's team guaranteed itself at least participation in the playoffs. That same evening, the only rival of the Blue and Yellows, the England national team, unexpectedly failed to beat the Northern Irish (0: 0). This seriously increased the chances of the Ukrainians for the coveted direct ticket. To get it, our compatriots need to either take first place or get into the top three of the second teams in the group stage.
There will be 16 national teams in the final part of Euro 2025: Slovakia, nine group winners, the top three teams among the runners-up and three playoff winners.
Dynamo's horizons
The U-18/19 youth national team (players not older than 2006) also turned a new page, gathering for the first time this season to work together. Dmytro Mykhaylenko's team will play in the Euro 2025 qualifying round in November, which will be preceded by a training camp. Two sparring matches with the host team are planned as part of the current Swiss one. The first brought a draw - 2:2.
"For our coaching staff, this is an acquaintance with the team ,"the coach said in an interview with the UAF official website. " I know many of these guys only from video materials. So there is a lot of work ... I would like it to be as close as possible to the main squad. I don't want to waste time. I think that the selection we have made allows us to hope that this will be at least the backbone of the team for November" (Uaf.ua, 4.09.24).
Obviously, one of the base clubs of this national team (as well as for the rest of the national teams) will be Dynamo Kyiv, the current champion of Ukraine. This week, the White and Blues learned their opponents in the Champions League in the UEFA Youth League 2024/25. The first opponent of Ihor Kostiuk's team will be the winner of the Lincoln Red Imps (Gibraltar) - Maribor (Slovenia) match. If successful, Kyiv will meet the strongest representative of the quartet: "Bilis (Albania) - 2 Korriku (Kosovo) / USD (Ireland) - Stjarnan (Iceland).
"Maribor is the favorite in its pair," commented I. Kostiuk (Fcdynamo.com, 3.09.24), " It is a good team, it is distinguished by its strength, and the team is a supplier of qualified players to Europe. So I think it will be very interesting.
Of course, this is an international experience, Dynamo represents the country in the international arena. We set the bar high with our performances in the previous seasons of the UEFA Youth League, so we are treated very carefully. For the players, playing internationally is a place where they gain European experience to improve their skills."
After the Europa League draw, the immediate international prospects of the Dynamo main team are also emerging. In particular, it has been officially confirmed that Oleksandr Shovkovskyi's team will play their home matches of the continental tournament in Hamburg, Germany. This information was shared, among other things, by Dynamo president Ihor Surkis, whose interview with the PROFUTBOL Digital YouTube channel was rebroadcast by the media in almost a hundred materials, and the story itself received more than 30 thousand views on the resource.
"Eight matches, eight away games, and in the winter there will be virtually no vacation or training," Ihor Mykhailovych outlined Dynamo's agenda for the coming months, " We play the last match of the main stage of the Europa League in January, and then we have to give the guys two or three weeks maximum to rest. And only after that we can prepare for the second half of the season. This is an experiment for us. Let's hope it will be successful."
The Dynamo president praised both the coaching work of O. Shovkovskyi and the players' attitude to the summer European Cup matches. In his opinion, the team deserved a ticket to the Champions League just as much as Salzburg did, but they were unlucky.
"Now we will try to perform with dignity in the Europa League," said I. Surkis, " This tournament is not much inferior to the Champions League in terms of its participants... These matches will show what we are capable of, what positions still need to be strengthened.
"Dynamo Kyiv represents the country, and so far we have been doing a decent job. We need great players. We used to be able to invite such players from abroad. You remember Belanda, Lance. These guys were very good, they competed with our Ukrainian players. But today we have a Ukrainian team, a young team" (Fcdynamo.com, Footclub.com.ua, Pressing.net.ua, Dynamo.kiev.ua, Sport.ua, Football.ua, Ua-football.com, Football24.ua, Хsport.ua, Footboom1.com, Ua.tribuna.com, etc., 2.09.24).
Meanwhile, Dynamo's next transfer was the acquisition of a legionnaire. Moreover, the transfer of Panamanian forward Eduardo Guerrero from Zorya (the contract is signed until the summer of 2029) can be perceived as an undoubted market success for the capital's team.
Firstly, not only Shakhtar Donetsk, Kyiv's main domestic rival, but also Serbian Red Star and Partizan, Hungarian Ferencvaros, and some Turkish clubs were bidding for the effective striker. Secondly, it provides another strong argument in favor of the trends of the team's systemic development (regardless of getting into the Champions League). And, thirdly, it is the deepening of the team's composition, which closes problematic tactical positions.
"Bryan Ceballos came to the center of defense, although he hasn't played yet because of Taras Mykhavko's frantic progress, but in terms of numbers, the defense has received another option to start," Oleksandr Sazhko analyzes Dynamo's summer transfer campaign (Ua.tribuna.com, 5.09.24 ) .
Another player of the youth national team of Ukraine, Maksym Bragaru, became the backup for Andriy Yarmolenko, who could not play the entire match. And the final chord is the arrival of Eduardo Guerrero, who will not allow Vanat to relax and will significantly add depth to the squad."
This transfer window has already become one of the best for Dynamo in many years, the author summarizes. "At the moment, Shovkovsky's defense looks really strong, with no weaknesses, at least at the UPL level: "Dynamo has at least two or even three players for each position.
"Dynamo didn't reinvent the wheel, they just started signing the best players in the UPL, except for those who play at Shakhtar," SerhiyTyshchenko pays tribute to the club's management (Sport.ua, 5.09.24 ) . Valentyn Rubchynskyi is considered to be the main Ukrainian talent outside of our big boys. Maksym Bragaru is the main talent of Chornomorets and a player of the Ukrainian youth national team of the last two convocations. Eduardo Guerrero is one of the best forwards in the UPL. All these players are adapted to Ukrainian football, life in the country and are ready to play right away. There is no need to overpay for them to come and play in Ukraine. You can't buy a player of the same level abroad for that kind of money."
For Guerrero, the first Panamanian native to join the Kyiv team, this is undoubtedly a big step forward in his career. In his first interview, the striker said that he was very happy to join the White and Blues, that he felt proud and was looking forward to taking the field in his new uniform.
75:0 in favor of football
The successful "game" of Dynamo's management is the synergy of many club units. It also includes the contribution of Hryhoriy Surkis, who, in fact, once laid the foundation for a successful football business model as the club's president. Today, Hryhoriy Mykhailovych is actively involved in the life of the team. And his anniversary became a holiday not only for Dynamo, but for the entire Ukrainian football.
"We are proud that you are a true Dynamo player, and the letter 'D' is engraved in your heart," this statement is one of the main motives in the Kyiv club's congratulatory message.
"For many years you have been faithfully serving Ukrainian and European football. You are a fundamental figure in the development, formation and progress of Dynamo Kyiv and all of Ukrainian football, as you have played and continue to play an extremely important role in them. Your name is inscribed in capital letters in the modern history of the number one game in independent Ukraine," reads the congratulatoryletter signed by Dynamo president Ihor Surkis, first-team coach Oleksandr Shovkovskyi and team captain Vitalii Buyalskyi (Fcdynamo.com, Footclub.com.ua, Pressing.net.ua, Dynamo.kiev.ua, Football.ua, Ua-football.com, etc., 4.09.24).
Colleagues from the Premier League emphasized the multifaceted influence of H. Surkis on the development of domestic football.
"As the first president of the Professional Football League of Ukraine and the head of the Football Federation of Ukraine, you laid the foundation for professional football in our country. Thanks to your leadership, Ukraine won the right to host Euro 2012, which was a landmark event for the whole country. Your professionalism has not gone unnoticed by FIFA and UEFA, where you have held leadership roles for many years, seven of which you spent as UEFA Vice President, defending the interests of Ukraine" (Upl.ua, 4.09.24).
Absolutely all congratulations to the jubilee mention his role in Ukraine and Poland winning the right to host the final tournament of Euro 2012.
"The two greatest achievements of H. Surkis in the FFU - Ukraine's gaining the status of Euro 2012 host countries together with Poland and the exemplary conduct of the tournament, as well as the first ever appearance of the Ukrainian national team in the final tournament of the World Cup, and immediately in the quarterfinals in 2006 - are already congratulations from the All-Ukrainian Association of Football Coaches. - At all levels - from the national team to the youth team, to the youth team, to the student team, and so on - our teams have achieved international level achievements" (Uafc.org.ua, 4.09.24).
The top international level saluted the honorary UEFA member with letters from two presidents, Gianni Infantino and Alexander Čeferin.
"My best wishes on this special day," reads the FIFA head's message ," Celebrating your birthday, we want to thank you for your contribution to the development and popularization of the sport that unites us all, football" (Dynamo.kiev.ua, Pressing.net.ua, Footclub.com.ua, Fcdynamo.com, etc., 5.09.24).
"I wish you good health and strength to gain resilience and remain optimistic in these difficult times for Ukraine," A. Cheferinsaid. " Knowing your wonderful energy and unwavering spirit, I have no doubt that you will succeed in all your plans and remain a source of inspiration and hope for all who know you. My thoughts are with you and your country - may peace and brighter days soon prevail for all" (Dynamo.kiev.ua, Pressing.net.ua, Footclub.com.ua, Fcdynamo.com, etc., 5.09.24).
Fortunately, the well-known football official remains in the ranks, inspiring by example, motivating young colleagues, sharing his experience and generally working for the international image of Ukraine.
Orest LELEKA
