The head coach of the Ukraine U-19 national team Dmytro Mykhailenko commented on the reports about Germany's intention to naturalize Bayer forward Artem Stepanov.
Dmytro Mykhailenko— I heard this a long time ago from various sources — whether Stepanov wants to play for the German national team, or the Germans themselves want to naturalize him, but that’s not a question for me.
— Have you talked to Stepanov about this topic?
— No. When he was with the national team, we only communicated regarding football matters.
— Did you plan to call up Stepanov for the next camp?
— Yes, he has been called up for all age categories. Stepanov is a player for the Ukraine U-17 national team, and the question is only one: does Artem himself have the desire and motivation to play for Ukraine. If he does, that’s good, and if not, that’s his choice, and we cannot pressure him. Perhaps he already feels like a German.
Now the Germans are in a better situation than we are to pressure Stepanov, because Artem lives and plays in Germany, his father got a job at Bayer. In Ukraine, nothing keeps them here; there is a war going on.
— Describe Stepanov’s profile as a player. He is often compared to Haaland.
— It seems to me that Artem imitates Haaland’s game and the Norwegian is a benchmark for him. Stepanov is very similar to Erling in terms of anthropometry, coordination, and speed; he even styled his hair like the Norwegian. Artem is very talented, physically gifted, has decent technique, and understands offensive play.
But without the ball, he still needs to improve his game — this is a problem for all players of his age. So far, Stepanov is not an ideal; he is a young guy and has a lot to learn, but he has great talent. His height is 192 cm! It’s clear that many want such a “machine.”
— Were you surprised when Stepanov debuted for Bayer in the Champions League?
— I was not surprised by this. Here the context is important. Stepanov came on when Bayer was winning 5:0 against Salzburg. Perhaps Alonso gave a rest to Schick because Bayer has an important Bundesliga match in two days. Or maybe Stepanov proved with his work that he deserved to get minutes in the Champions League. Only the head coach of Bayer can answer this question.
— If you compare Stepanov with Ponomarenko?
— They are similar in some ways. Both young men are very talented, but to play at the adult level, they need to work much harder. I’m sure they will take that step.
Andriy Piskun
