The head coach of the Ukrainian national team Sergey Rebrov shared his expectations for the final match of the Ukrainian Cup of this season, in which today in Zhytomyr the Kyiv Dynamo will play against the Donetsk Shakhtar.
Sergey Rebrov. Photo — A. Popov— The match in Zhytomyr is generating increased interest in football circles. What do you expect from this game?
— What expectations can there be when such opponents are playing! I am sure it will be a very interesting game — just like any confrontation between Dynamo and Shakhtar. Moreover, for both teams, the season has been very difficult, so the final is very important for each of them.
— Are you planning to attend this match or will you watch its progress on television?
— Yes, yes, I will.
— Which of the matches between Dynamo and Shakhtar have you remembered the most as a participant — both as a player and as a coach?
— All the matches of Dynamo against Shakhtar and Shakhtar against Dynamo are uncompromising. They are extremely important for both teams at any level — even when they meet in friendly matches. For me, as a coach, this is the match of the Cup final of the 2014/15 season, when we lost in the penalty shootout by two goals but managed to snatch victory.
As a player, I remember all the matches and all the goals I scored. I even remember the period when I scored for Shakhtar in a match against Dynamo. At that time, it was something incredible for me! I was really very impressed with that goal. When I played for the Dynamo team, I scored quite a lot. Each of these goals was very important to me. And they were even more important for all the fans — both of Shakhtar and Dynamo.
— What would you wish to the participants of tomorrow’s match?
— That they respect each other. This is truly an uncompromising game that is very important for both opponents. I also want to wish that the team that wins the match does so in a fair fight, without any things like provocations and the like. I am confident that tomorrow there will be an interesting and uncompromising duel.
— Time flies quickly, and in just over three weeks, the Ukrainian national team will participate in the Four Nations Tournament, the Canadian Shield, which will take place in Toronto. How will our team prepare for it?
— Everything will happen as always, according to plan — just as in preparation for other matches. I believe that even though the games planned for our team are friendly matches, they are important. After all, their conduct will precede the start of the qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup. We take these games seriously, and preparation for them has been underway since our matches with Belgium were played.
Vyacheslav Kulchytskyi
