The famous Ukrainian coach and now expert Oleg Fedorchuk shared his opinion on the advisability of changing the head coach of the Ukrainian national team due to the unsuccessful start in the qualifying tournament for the 2026 World Cup (Ukraine — France — 0:2, Azerbaijan — Ukraine — 1:1).
— Oleg Viktorovich, is a change of head coach needed for the Ukrainian national team right now?
— This question has arisen, but there is one “but.” To change a coach, there needs to be a new candidate. We’ve already gone through this when Andriy Shevchenko left the position. They offered it to one, two, and three specialists, the same Sergey Rebrov refused at that time, and ultimately, Alexander Petrakov became the head coach at the last moment. Therefore, I reiterate, if the UAF leadership had a desire to make a change in the coaching staff of the national team, it should be a specialist who would satisfy everyone.
What surprised me was not so much the performance of the Ukrainian team at the recent European Championship, but the assessment of those performances, and nothing has changed since then. It is not necessary for players to end their careers in the national team; only the best performers should play for the national team.
Interestingly, I have not heard from any expert or football journalist what kind of football the Ukrainian national team plays. Each match feels like the beginning of something new. But it shouldn’t be that way. Under Rebrov’s leadership, the team has already played nearly 30 matches, and no one knows what to expect from the team.
— If we assume that the position of head coach of the Ukrainian national team is currently vacant. What candidates do you see for this position?
— Myron Markevich comes to mind. He has four games under his belt, all successful; he knows our football from the inside and lives in Ukraine. Yuriy Kalytvintsev, who won the European Championship with the youth Ukrainian national team. Unai Melgosa is doing well with the youth team. So, here are already three candidates, in my opinion, worthy of consideration.
— Will the Ukrainian national team advance from the group?
— If there are no drastic changes, then no, because to date, we are weaker than Iceland in movement, commitment, and teamwork. Of course, anything can happen in football, but if you look at the two games of the Ukrainian national team and the two matches of our main competitor, they are from different leagues. The coach of the national team is authority, discipline, and psychology. And we have big problems with that.
Sergey Demyanchuk