Former Dynamo coach Leonid Buryak commented on the results of the Nations League playoff draw, in which the Ukrainian national team will meet Belgium.
Leonid Buryak. Photo — O. Vasylyeva— What do you think about the playoff draw of the Nations League, according to which Ukraine will play against Belgium?
— The draw is good, it went well. The Ukrainian national team, if in shape and on the move, can beat any team. How they will approach the matches against Belgium, with which football players, who will play in those matches, we will see. Of course, Belgium is a tough opponent. I don’t think we should throw ashes on our heads. We have what we have. We will prepare seriously for the matches against the Belgians. We have quite good footballers. Of course, the Belgian team has a pretty serious selection of players. But I think we will all enjoy these matches against Belgium.
— It will be interesting to confront Belgium in the sense that we recently played against them at the Euros. Are there any unresolved questions about that match which ended in a 0:0 draw?
— I cannot characterize that game, because there was such a difficult situation in the group then. And, to be honest, the game against Belgium was mediocre. It was evident that the players were exhausted.
— Overall, how do you rate Ukraine's final matches in the group stage of this Nations League?
— I do not want to criticize. There are coaches who will analyze. But again, we had two different halves. But it is worth noting that the first half against the Albanians was very good. Everything went very well for the Ukrainian national team before the break. The game against Georgia was also very good. The first half was very good. Overall, the match against the Georgians was quite serious. And we need to prepare for the game against the Belgian team.
— And we hope that by the time of the matches against Belgium, all key players will be ready to play!
— Preparing for the game against Belgium, we need to take the match against the Georgian national team as a basis. In that meeting, there was effort, very good speed, and struggle. All the best Ukrainian football players need to be involved in the matches against Belgium. Because there will be a name, prestige, money, and many other things at stake.
— In preparing for the confrontation with Belgium, should we consider the draw with Georgia and the victory over Albania?
— Albania is not Belgium. And we have not played any match after which we could go out and say that it was fantastic and we liked everything about that game! Yes, in the match against Georgia, a number of players performed quite strongly. Of course, for the match against Belgium, we need to call up players who will play in attack and will be relevant.
— And we hope that Tsygankov and Malinovskyi will be ready to play in the matches against Belgium. We also want other leaders to be ready to step onto the field!
— There is also Yarmolenko, who cannot be written off. Yes, Tsygankov and Malinovskyi are also important players for the national team. For such matches as against Belgium, we need to go out with motivation that everyone should have. There must also be readiness from the players! And we must not just play! The Ukrainian national team players must have exceptional dedication.
Dmytro Kotkov
