Former footballer of Lviv’s "Karpaty", "Minai" and other clubs Mikhail Kopolovets shared his thoughts on the match of the 1st round of the World Cup 2026 qualifying tournament Ukraine — France (0:2), as well as what he expects from the next match of the Ukrainian national team in this campaign — against the Azerbaijan national team, which will take place this Tuesday in Baku.
Mikhail Kopolovets— France is a very strong team. I think we performed decently. Given our current situation, we can’t be ashamed of our game. We could have played better, but today this is our level. That’s all.
— If you take it overall, who could you highlight in the Ukrainian squad in this match from a positive standpoint?
— Zabarnyi is good; he’s more or less stable. The only thing is that play against Mbappe, but again — he is the best player in the world at the moment. One of the best forwards. Zabarnyi played well; he had a chance to score, but hit the post.
Again, who can I highlight — we lost 0:2. If someone had scored one or two goals, we would all be equal.
Zabarnyi could have been highlighted if not for that moment with Mbappe. But in so far as highlighting someone — the team lost, which means everyone played poorly. To say someone stood out, God knows how I couldn’t.
— Given the match against France, what are your expectations in the game with Azerbaijan?
— We definitely need to beat this team if we want to contend for any positions or want to go anywhere. We must definitely win. If we do not beat this team, then we have no reason to be here. That’s a fact.
I understand that everyone plays football, everyone has learned to play. We are not in the best time and results in football, but we need to go out and play. I think after the game with the French, they will leave, although it won’t be easier. It won’t be easier because everyone plays football now. But we need to win. We can only win, otherwise, what do we do at all.
