Vyacheslav Grozny: "Will it be easier if Rebrov leaves?"

Discussion of the Nations League match between the Czech Republic and Ukraine (3:2) with Vyacheslav Grozny, the country's best coach in 1996 and 2002.

- Vyacheslav Viktorovich, we played much better against the Czech Republic than against Albania, but the result was just as negative.

- There were a lot of changes. Six new players were included in the starting lineup. This is a normal practice, because it is not easy to play two matches in a few days. The recruitment of players in the Ukrainian national team, especially those of a constructive nature, allows for such a rotation.

After the first game, Serhii Rebrov spoke about individual and team mistakes. Yesterday, this trend was also present. We see that in modern football, teams do not practice the possibility of personal care in their penalty area, no one is responsible for anyone. In my opinion, it makes sense to play the zone before the penalty area, and to act personally in the penalty area. Then there will be a specific responsibility for the player and everyone will work to the end.

- The danger at our goal arose at the beginning of the match.

- There was a penetrating pass, our player did not work with the opponent and a dangerous moment occurred. Then the player passes to a partner with whom no one is playing. It was good that we managed to block it and Trubin took the ball away. However, at the end of the first half we were punished - we scored from a rebound.

- Something similar happened on Saturday in the game between Georgia and the Czech Republic.

- I carefully watched the game in Tbilisi. Goalkeeper Mamardashvili was making a save, but there was no one on the rebound. There were several such moments. We scored in a similar situation. The question arises: why do we sit down so low to the goalkeeper when we need to keep the support zone? In modern football, this is quite a serious matter and mistakes are immediately punished.

- What would you note about the national team's two matches?

- Everyone saw that we played the second half much better than the first. I think the coaching staff is analyzing this. In the game against Albania, we gave our opponents the opportunity to have free possession of the ball, gave them a lot of creative freedom. They used it. In the first half, the Albanians had 3-4 chances to score. To protect ourselves from trouble, I think we had to apply high pressure. The level of technique of our players, including speed, is much higher, our players play in high-level teams. They know how to cover their opponents and make them make mistakes.

It was the same in the match with the Czech Republic. I was surprised not to see Patrick Schick in the starting lineup, who scored 20 goals in 40 matches. Maybe they have some kind of conflict in the team. But it was clear that the hosts would play from the defense.

- And from the first minutes we had players who were more inclined to attack.

- And not only that. Stepanenko's appearance was predictable, because Sydorchuk was not included in the application. Plus Yarmolenko. The coaching staff released experienced leaders so that young players could show their best qualities alongside them. Mudryk had to add speed, which he did. He had a goal-scoring chance, made passes and assists, and gathered several opponents around him. Zinchenko also played well. He is good at split passes. These are very important players for the national team, although they don't have enough game practice. Let's hope that they will be involved more often in matches in Chelsea and Arsenal, and in October they will show their usual game in the national team.

- You mentioned mistakes. It's hard to win when you give the ball to the opponent in your own penalty area and earn a penalty on the spot.

- Matvienko did not play with his hand on purpose. I didn't see the penalty right away. Few people would have seen it if not for VAR. Shaparenko's mistake, yes, became a goal. You need to play more reliably in the penalty area. I wanted to save the ball, but it should have just been knocked out anywhere.

- The game of the national team was significantly strengthened by substitutions.

- They worked well. Tsygankov passed the ball to Sudakov. Then they almost created another goal and could have saved the match. In my opinion, these are the players of the starting lineup. Both have regular game practice.

I want to draw attention to one point. The national team does not have a set-piece coach. This is how the leading teams practice now. The head coach cannot do everything on his own. Jurgen Klopp in Liverpool had five such assistants with a narrow specialization. He even had an outs coach. Don't be surprised: the position of goalkeeping coach was also previously unusual to perceive. Nowadays, a standards coach studies and analyzes opponents in detail, paying attention to the little things. This is a big job. Similarly, someone in the national team must be responsible for organizing team defense. Because systemic mistakes, individual and team, need to be rooted out.

- Despite our last place, I think the fight in the group will continue until the last round.

- There are four more matches ahead. Given our tournament position, we now have to beat Georgia twice. We can take first place if we win all the remaining matches. In fact, we no longer have the right to make a mistake. The coaching staff also understands this.

- In your opinion, did Dovbyk miss?

- It's hard for him now. In Girona, the game is structured in such a way that everyone is looking for a central striker. It was the same under Stuani, and now, when Artem is no longer there. This is the team's philosophy. They have lost a lot of players, but the style of play has not changed. Roma have not yet realized this. In Italy, Dovbyk lacks the service he had in Spain. Roma does not play mainly in the center forward area yet. They have to accept the Ukrainian as a striker. And the team sees that Artem can score during training. He has a shot, a header, covering the ball with his body, and dribbling. All this needs to be realized. The sooner this understanding comes to the club, the better it will be for the national team.

- What do you think of Vanat's performance up front?

- His appearance was asking for it. The Czech Republic is worse in defense than Albania. Suffice it to recall that in the Euro qualifiers, the Albanians defeated the Czechs 3-0. There, the game was staged according to Italian patterns. In the Czech Republic, it was noticeable in the match against Georgia, there are large gaps between the lines. That's why attacks on their goal are very dangerous. Vanat opens up actively, he is fast. And it was no accident that he scored. At Dynamo, he plays in a similar style. So take the attacking line. Yarmolenko, Shaparenko, Tymchyk are all connected. All of them are Dynamo players, they know who moves where. This group interacts well with each other and, as a result, created a goal against the Czech Republic. Vanat, by the way, scored the first goal for the national team.

- Nowadays, many people write that Rebrov should resign after two defeats. It is clear that this is a common hate speech, but the coach also realizes that there is no result and can leave.

- Leaving the team is the easiest solution. You write a letter of resignation and it's off your shoulders, you live a normal life. Rebrov is a qualified club coach. The national team has a significantly different approach. Here, it is much harder to realize your philosophy, your ideas, and realize yourself. Players from different clubs come to the national team, where the game structure is different from others, the training process is different, and the training follows different patterns. You need to be patient. Rebrov has been working with the team for a little over a year. This is not such a long time. Therefore, we should not be so aggressive towards him.

The national team coach is the whole country, which is either proud of the result or surprised that there is no result. This is a feature of our profession.

Deschamps was also asked about his resignation after the defeat by Italy, saying that Zidane would do better. The French coach calmly proved that he did not mind. But he has a contract, and he doesn't make a disaster out of a defeat. In the end, any team is inferior. Spalletti was once removed in Italy in the same way.

We don't have Shevchenko in our offense now, who scores a bag of goals. The generation is such that there are more creative players in the midfield. Shaparenko, Mudryk, Sudakov, Yarmolenko, Zinchenko... Or give Rebrov four Zabarnyi in the defense, and the game will shine with completely different colors.

And, finally, if Rebrov leaves, what's next, who's next? Will it be easier? What can change dramatically - will new players appear, will we naturalize Messi and Ronaldo? We need to look at such things objectively. Yes, there is no result yet. It does not suit not only the fans but also the coaching staff. We concede at least two goals in every match. We make systematic mistakes, even near our penalty area, there is a problem with standards. And we do not realize everything we create at the opponents' goal.

- What would you say is positive?

- We have a lot of creative players. We continue to work on the balance between creative players and those who do mostly menial work. The potential of our national team is very high.

- You are talking about potential. As the matches with Albania and the Czech Republic showed, the leaders of Shakhtar and Dynamo, Sudakov and Shaparenko, respectively, are cramped in the middle of the field, so to speak.

- I think the coaching staff is analyzing this point. We must also take into account the psychological aspect. We all expect Sudakov to play like Kevin de Bruyne. However, critics do not mention or do not know that de Bruyne signed a contract with Chelsea, went on loan to Werder and Wolfsburg, and played in England after returning from Germany.

It's great when you have experienced players like Yarmolenko and Stepanenko who can give you advice and back you up. But still, when you lose the ball, you need to work on it to the end. Bring the rough work to the maximum. We need to avoid split passes in our direction, rapid attacks. Of course, Sudakov is tired. But he will be fine for the Champions League. Keep in mind that the leader in the club is not always the leader in the national team. Everyone here is a leader.

- Apparently, Shakhtar's preparations for the tournament are intense.

- Of course it is. In the Ukrainian championship, everyone knows that you have to leave Sudakov without the ball. Remember Mudryk. Bondarenko and the same Sudakov gave him so many assists that it was easy to sell him to any club. Life dictates the conditions: legionnaires do not leave, and Ukrainians who used to go on loan become leaders.

I constantly ask coaches why we become world champions among juniors, perform well in all age groups, and they get lost in adult football? Club coaches are also to blame. We sold Yarmolenko in time - Tsygankov appeared. They pulled Mikhavko to Dynamo's first team, and if he continues in the same spirit, he will soon knock on the door of the national team.

- He will be a partner for Zabarnyi.

- The national team coaches are watching him. There are also Fedir, Krasnopir, and others. These are competitors for Shaparenko, Sudakov, Zinchenko, Yaremchuk, Dovbyk and Vanat. There are young people who also want to play for the national team.

- Vyacheslav Viktorovich, the prospects are certainly good. But now we have zero points and we need to save the situation.

- We absolutely have to tell ourselves that after two matches in the group we are in last place, we lost two matches in which we conceded five goals and scored three. We lost twice in September, and now we need to win twice in October and twice in November. If we manage to get six points in the next games, we will have a completely different attitude and mood.

Gennadiy Chekhovskiy