Assistant head coach of Zhytomyr's Polissya Volodymyr Knysh spoke about his team's midfielder Oleksandr Nazarenko, who received his debut call-up to the Ukrainian national team for the October matches of the League of Nations.
- Volodymyr Mykolayovych, tell us when you first met Nazarenko?
- It was at the Dnipro Academy. Sashko was found by Serhii Ivanovych Sobetskyi, a former Dnipro goalkeeper who was working as a coach at the time. Nazarenko was 11-12 years old at the time. Sashko was in the 2000 group, and there were many promising players there, including Supryaga.
- What was your first impression of Nazarenko?
- Sashko was fragile, small, but his speed immediately caught my eye and it was clear that he thought well. Nazarenko stood out even then, but not as brightly as Supryaga. Vlad was a real star at the age of 15, scoring in every game.
And Nazarenko played really well in the U-19. He already had a lot of chutzpah and quick decision-making. Then I realized that I was looking at a footballer who could achieve a lot.
- Did Nazarenko immediately play as a winger or was he tried in other positions as a child?
- He always played as a winger.
- What are Nazarenko's strengths?
- He has good technique, good speed and good intelligence. These are the three components of a star. Sasha, if he starts a pass, he finishes it, unlike most players. He also constantly sharpens, shoots, and scores. The most important thing is that Nazarenko knows the decision even before he receives the ball. This shows the player's class. Many people can run around, but don't know what to do afterwards. Sasha does. His football intelligence is very well developed.
- What else does he need to improve?
- Nothing in terms of playing characteristics. God bless him and keep him strong. Sasha is a rather tiny guy and he was constantly plagued by injuries. Nazarenko takes a lot of risks because he works with the ball at high speed, and this is very dangerous. He is constantly being hunted by defenders, fouled a lot and hit from behind.
- You've talked about football qualities, but what kind of person is Nazarenko, what kind of character does he have?
- He is a modest guy - he is more silent than talking. Sasha reveals himself mostly in the circle of close friends or in a one-on-one conversation. If you compare him to Makuan, it's heaven and earth. Benny's mouth almost never closes, he makes a lot of noise, and Sasha is almost inaudible.
- Nazarenko made the most effective actions in Dnipro-1 under Dmytro Mykhailenko - ten goals and eight assists, but it took him 58 matches to do so. This season, under Ashura, Sasha scored seven goals and provided four assists in eight matches for Polissia! What is the secret of this performance?
- Sasha has already become confident in his abilities, matured and gained some juice. And he will continue to shine and progress. Nazarenko has gained confidence, there is no longer any doubt whether he is a footballer or not. He is a super football player!
- Sasha assisted Shakhtar's goal and scored a hat-trick for Obolon. Which of Nazarenko's goals or assists did you remember the most this season?
- All his goals are cool, but I remember his assist in the match against Vorskla. Nazarenko did an unreal thing! He opened up, caught the ball on the line, picked up the coordination and cut to Luyfer. A super performance! This is a crazy level.
- How does Nazarenko react to his effective actions?
- He doesn't. He's a very calm guy and takes it all in stride. Sasha is great in this regard. He doesn't have star disease at all!
- Now Nazarenko is leading the UPL scoring table together with Sudakov. Do you believe that at the end of the season he will win the race and become the best sniper?
- Of course, I do. I respect Sudakov a lot, but Sasha has more chances.
- I saw your interview five years ago, and you already predicted that Nazarenko would be called up to the national team.
- I've been coaching for 30 years and have seen a lot of players, including Serhiy Nazarenko, Shershun, Matyukhin, Anton Kravchenko, Vartsaba, Tretyakov, Kogut, Lunev, Kozhushko, etc. And when I saw Nazarenko, it immediately became clear to me what he was capable of.
He had speed, plus decision-making speed, plus ball handling speed, that is, technique. I knew that with these three characteristics he would become a top football player. Usually, footballers have only two speeds, but Nazarenko has all of them. Plus, he has a strong character, without which these three speeds would be useless.
- Many fans in the comments wondered why Nazarenko was not called up to the national team, but Sasha still waited for a call-up for the upcoming Nations League matches.
- He received the call right in front of me!
- Wow! How did it happen?
- The two of us were going to go home to Dnipro, we had already bought tickets and were standing at the train station. And then Sashko got a call from the national team and asked: "Where are you? Do you have your cleats?". Just so you understand, there are 20 minutes left before the national team train leaves. I don't know why Nazarenko had his cleats with him when he was driving home, but he had them (Laughs). In the end, I took the train to Dnipro, and Sasha took the train to the national team.
I told him: "From now on, we'll always go to Dnipro together, so that you can hand in your ticket and I'll send you to the national team. You see, I brought you good luck." (Laughs).
- How did Nazarenko react to being called up to the national team?
- He took it very calmly. We had already bought tickets back from Dnipro, and Sasha said: "Mykolayovych, now you'll be traveling alone in the compartment - like a king." We hugged and I wished him good luck with the national team.
- What do you think about Nazarenko's prospects in the national team, where Mudryk and Kabaev play his position?
- He has good competitors, but Sasha deserves to fight with them for a place in the lineup and benefit the national team. I don't know how many minutes he will have, 30, 60 or 90, but he will always be useful. I have no doubt in him. I repeat - the guy has everything!
- And if you compare him with Mudryk.
- I'm not familiar with Mudryk and haven't seen him up close, so I don't want to discuss his qualities. I will say this: Sasha will be a worthy competitor to Mudryk.
- Will Nazarenko be able to push Mudryk out of the national team?
- Well, why not? He can, of course.
- What do you expect from the matches of the national team of Ukraine against Georgia and the Czech Republic, given the series of injuries and how badly our team started?
- A series of injuries, the change of generations - it all hurts. I want to make a little lyrical digression. Is that why our clubs are playing very poorly in European competitions now? It's all about logistics. To get to Poland, we need to spend 20 hours on a bus or train, and then spend the same amount of time on the way back. And European teams get on a plane and in an hour they are already anywhere.
Perhaps it's easier for our guys who play abroad in this regard, but it's definitely hard for UPL players. Therefore, one of the reasons for failure in European competitions is logistics. Because of this, it seems that our guys are crawling, and when they recover, they fly. You can't fool nature. Plus, we are psychologically driven because of the war.
Returning to your question, I expect only victories from the Ukrainian national team. They have a good coach. I am personally acquainted with Rebrov and I can say that Serhiy Stanislavovych is a very smart specialist. Yes, he got into a difficult situation, but I still expect victories from the national team, we have good players.
- Do you agree with the statement that Nazarenko is the best player in the UPL right now?
- It is true. I'll tell you one case. During the pre-game training, we practiced outs, and Nazarenko improved this episode. Another player was supposed to be in his place, but he was a little stupid, and Sasha fulfilled this role. We would have suffered like this if Nazarenko hadn't solved the issue with this game episode. It speaks of his IQ.
- How does Nazarenko work out in training?
- He works normally, he runs, but when he feels that there is too much, sometimes he can save his strength and stop. He is even hunted during training. Sasha knows his resources very well.
- Where do you think Nazarenko will play in five years, can we see him in a club in the top 5 leagues in Europe?
- Of course! He can play in any team! The main thing is that injuries avoid him, he has everything else.
- So you won't be surprised if Real Madrid is interested in him?
- Not at all. All coaches are looking for players like Nazarenko. Sasha is suitable for any task.
Andrii Piskun