The U-18 youth national team of Ukraine has returned from Sweden, where they participated in an international tournament with the hosts, as well as teams from Norway and Denmark. The actions of the “blue-yellow” team were led by Volodymyr Samborsky, who answered questions from the official website of UAF after returning to Ukraine.
Volodymyr Samborsky (photo: uaf.ua)— Mr. Volodymyr, you were with the Ukraine U−18 national team at an international tournament featuring renowned European teams. How did it go?
— The competition was organized at a high level. The opponents were strong, especially Sweden and Denmark. I would also mention Norway. It might not seem that way based on the result (6:1), but they are a solid team; they just had some bad luck.
For us, the main goal was to gain international experience, and we wanted to evaluate potential candidates for the team. I can say that I am satisfied with the players’ attitude toward the game. We could have performed better, but again, our goal was not to win the tournament; the coaching staff had its own objectives. I don’t want to make bold statements, but this team has great potential.
— The Ukraine national team confidently won against Norway and Sweden (2:0), but then suffered a heavy defeat to Denmark (0:3). Is this related to the rotation of the lineup?
— Here, I would attribute it to a combination of factors. We did not prepare specifically for the matches; we worked in a planned training regime — that was the priority. Additionally, we gave all players the chance to prove themselves so we could see them in action. Yes, we studied the opponents, but once again, the focus was on our own game and on completing specific tasks during the friendly matches.
However, I can confidently say that we have room for growth in terms of preparing young players. Our opponents differed in terms of physicality, athleticism, and speed of decision-making; they showed what could be described as more mature football. From this perspective, we are a bit behind. But if the guys, even while playing in Ukraine, demand a little more from themselves, a lot can change for the better.
