Famous journalist Andriy Shakhov expressed his opinion after the defeat of the Ukrainian national team in the Nations League match against the Czech Republic.
Andriy Shakhov"We lost again. I can list without hesitation what I liked about our team's performance. We scored twice. They attacked sharply. We made 19 shots, 15 of which were from outside the penalty area. We created at least four great scoring chances, which is undoubtedly more than the Czechs. With the score 1-3, we did not give up, but played one goal, then missed two opportunities to equalize. We can talk about character, good physical shape, unwillingness to lose...
But the score is on the board! And there is a statement that Ukraine has lost the second match in a row and is going into the break without a single point. There are only four games left. The task at hand - to take first place in the group and return to the tournament's elite - is becoming increasingly difficult to solve.
It can be done, no question! Remember, for example, how Dynamo Kyiv under Valeriy Lobanovsky in the Champions League had only two points after three rounds and eventually won the group. It will be harder for the national team to do this because they don't play in their home country. But it is still possible.
In no way should the defeats against Albania and the Czech Republic, which lost the last three out of four matches (with one draw), be taken as a given or a failure. We need to analyze, understand the reasons for the failures, and improve our defense, because all five goals were scored from scoring positions right in front of the goal. So the coaching staff has a lot of work to do before the next matches. And there is no more chance for a mistake, otherwise, instead of rising to the first division, we will fall down," Bankova Mail quoted Shakhov as saying.
