On Friday, September 5, the Ukrainian national team lost in the opening match of the World Cup 2026 qualifying tournament to France — 0:2. The match took place in Wroclaw. Here is the post-match press conference of the head coach of the Ukrainian national team, Sergey Rebrov.
Sergey Rebrov— What allowed you to improve the team's performance after the break?
— We also played well in the first half, but we defended more and didn't finish our attacks. We reached the final third, but there were almost no shots. In the second half, we improved in this component. Moreover, France was already playing to the score, they didn't press us as they did in the first half, allowing us more ball control. But in football, it is very important to finish attacks. After the break, we managed to create several chances. It is very difficult to create moments against such an opponent, and if we do not take advantage of them, we will lose.
— Kaluzhny became the only midfielder who played without substitutions. Why didn't you replace him? If he is not ready to play against Azerbaijan, who can step in for him?
— I do not believe that we have only one player for this position. For example, Ocheretko plays in this position at Shakhtar. First, look at our squad, and then ask questions.
— How do you assess the support from the stands?
— You saw everything yourself. We are grateful to the fans; they really created an atmosphere that the players felt. It was very interesting. I think this inspiration was also passed on to our players.
We played against the French national team, and it was difficult. But I think the guys gave their all today. This is also thanks to the support from the stands. This was the fourth time we played in Wroclaw, and each time the support here is simply incredible.
— Are you satisfied with the performance of the Yarmolyuk-Sudakov pair?
— And why are they playing in a pair? (Laughs).
— Two midfielders.
— And who is Kaluzhny then?
— A defensive midfielder.
— A defensive midfielder... And in what position did Yarmolyuk play today?
— Midfielder.
— Midfielder... Well, you probably saw that we played in a 4−2−3−1 formation, and Sudakov was in a completely different position. But I am satisfied with all the players. Yes, we created not many chances, but everyone worked defensively too. Including Sudakov, Kaluzhny, and Yarmolyuk. We substituted the last one because he, like in matches for Brentford, did a huge amount of work, and we need him very much for the next match.
Alexander POPOV
