Ukrainian coach Sergey Nagornyak commented on the results of the draw for the Nations League playoff round for the right to compete in Division "A" of the tournament, where the national team of Ukraine was drawn against Belgium, and also shared his impressions of the recent matches of the Ukrainian national team against Georgia (1:1) and Albania (2:1).
— What do you say about the fact that the Belgian national team became the opponent of Ukraine in the Nations League playoffs for the right to play in the elite division?
— You can play against any team. Belgium is not in their best form at the moment, but, in my opinion, this is the worst option from those that could have come up in the draw. But on the other hand, maybe having such an opponent is for the better.
Probably, we will play in our favorite way as the second number against Belgium. The question is whether De Bruyne will play in these matches. Spring will be the peak of the championship in Europe. We'll see! Belgium is a tough opponent, but we can get through them. The Belgians looked not very convincing in the Nations League.
— In the 6th round, Belgium lost to Israel!
— Israel showed in this match that you can play against Belgium. That super-generation of the Belgian national team is slowly fading, but they still have strong players. The same Jeremy Doku from Man City and other great footballers who play in top clubs.
— And interestingly, not long ago at Euro, Ukraine faced Belgium!
— Yes, that match ended in a draw. And that meeting showed that you can play against the Belgian national team.
— What impressions do you have from the matches against Georgia (1:1) and Albania (2:1)?
— In the match against Georgia, there were some flaws in certain episodes, and at times our team was lucky. For some reason, it was not our best game, especially in the second half.
Regarding the match against Albania, I will say that it's great that we managed to score two quick goals. In the first half, we didn’t give Albania any chances at all. Our guys scored twice and completely controlled the course of the match. The second half, the Albanians started actively, creating a chance immediately. Thank God, they didn’t score on Trubin at that moment. It was also nerve-wracking when a penalty was awarded against us.
These are all psychological aspects. And I always say: in matches for the national team, you don’t need to show beautiful football! In national team matches, you need to win and deliver results. That is the most important thing needed for the national team. The footballers did a great job in achieving results! Thank God we didn’t drop to Division C. Now the national team feels less pressure in terms of having achieved a result.
— Zinchenko and Yaremchuk probably felt hungry for goals? They started and scored immediately!
— It often happens. Many of our footballers, who sat on the bench in European clubs, came to the national team and tried to give their all! Therefore, there are no questions. Zinchenko and Yaremchuk scored! This means the coach guessed right with the starting lineup.
— And Kalyuzhny played great again against the Albanians!
— Kalyuzhny in these Nations League matches, when he began to be called up, started twice and the team won both times. And that is the most important thing. The main thing is that Kalyuzhny sets an example for everyone on how to play for the national team. One flaw Ivan has is that he’s not very fast. But Kalyuzhny compensates for it with the volume of work done and fighting spirit. I believe he also played at his level against the Albanians. Kalyuzhny lives for this!
— On the bench in the match against the Albanians, Oleksiy Sychev from Rukh also came on. What do you say about his game?
— He did great! Rukh is currently experiencing a crisis. Aside from the winning match in the cup against Karpaty, they haven’t been able to win for a long time. And Sychev is probably the only player who is really performing at a good level. He provides assists and works incredibly hard.
I believe Sychev did a great job. I will also highlight Krupsky from Vorskla. Believe me, Sychev and Krupsky are two good competitors for the flanking defender position in the national team of Ukraine. They won't let each other relax. Sychev did everything required of him.
— Hutsulyak and Nazarenko also didn't fade away in the match against Albania!
— Nazarenko comes on the field, gets chances, but hasn’t been able to score yet. But he will score! The most important thing is that he has chances. These guys are hungry for games for the national team and for goals for the national team.
— And Trubin showed composure at a crucial moment. He didn’t concede the second goal and helped maintain the winning score!
— Trubin is the natural choice at the moment. But we have 4, or maybe even 5 good goalkeepers! But Trubin shows with his play why he is number one today!
Andrei Pisarenko