On Saturday, June 7, the Ukrainian national team lost in the first match of the friendly tournament "Canadian Shield" to the Canadian national team — 2:4. The match took place in Toronto. We present to you the post-match press conference of the head coach of the Ukrainian national team, Sergey Rebrov.
Sergey Rebrov— What happened today? Why did the Ukrainian national team play so poorly today?
— Because we made individual errors in defense. We had a lot of them.
In the first half, we had very good opportunities, but we didn’t score, and the opponent used all their chances against our goal. Unfortunately, we conceded three goals before the break. And it was difficult — to be losing 0:3 after just 30 minutes of play. But I believe that all these goals are the result of individual errors in defense. And this is a very important point: we play at a very high level, against teams of very high levels, to which the Canadian national team belongs, and if we make mistakes in defense so often, the opponent will score against us.
I can’t say we played very poorly. But we made very serious mistakes in defense, which had a direct impact on the result. Unfortunately, I didn’t see 100% concentration from the players today. And that is my responsibility. Yes, it’s a friendly match, but before it, we talked seriously with the guys about how we must treat the game with maximum responsibility — both for those fans who come to the stadium to support us and for those who will watch the match on TV. Right now, it’s very important to bring positive emotions to Ukrainians.
— How did you find the atmosphere that was at the stadium today?
— I am very happy that there was such support. For our team and the Canadian team. The atmosphere was truly fantastic. But in this match, there was one main problem — we lost.
— Will there be changes in your team’s lineup for the match against New Zealand?
— Of course. There will be many changes. We’ll see what exactly they will be after analyzing the condition of the players after today’s match. Now we have 23 football players at our disposal, and each of them will play in this tournament.
Yes, these are friendly matches, but Canada showed us our problems in defense today. They are similar to those we had in the Nations League playoff match against Belgium. We don’t have much time, but we need to work on these mistakes.
— How do you assess Andriy Lunin’s condition?
— He is in full order. We currently have three equal goalkeepers in the team. Lunin will play in the second match of this tournament. He is ready.
— Can we say that the low intensity of matches in the UPL affects the quality of the Ukrainian national team’s play?
— Yes. Unfortunately, this is the level of the UPL right now. But, on the other hand, there were many footballers on the field in our squad today who play in foreign clubs. And I don’t think that the level of guys from the UPL is lower than that of our legionnaires. We just need to really be a team on the field, to concentrate on the game in defense and attack. We lost the first half due to unfortunate errors in defense — both individual and team ones. Therefore, all this needs to be analyzed.
Yes, there is a war going on in Ukraine now, and the level of our championship is not as high as we would like it to be. But the footballers who come to the national team are of a high enough level, in my opinion. And they need to show that level.
Alexander POPOV
