Former Donetsk Shakhtar midfielder Mariusz Lewandowski shared his thoughts on the prospects of the Ukrainian national team in the playoffs of the 2026 World Cup qualifying tournament. Recall, in the semi-finals of this stage, the 'blue-yellow' will play against the Swedish national team, and if they advance to the final, the opponent of the Ukrainian national team will be the winner of the Poland vs. Albania pair.
— Mariusz, as soon as the pairs for the first round of the 2026 World Cup playoffs were announced, the bookmakers immediately set the lines, and by the odds, the Ukraine vs. Sweden pair seems very balanced, about 52 to 48 percent in favor of our guys. What do you say: who is the favorite in the 'blue-yellow' teams' matchup?
— If these national teams were to play each other today, I would say Ukraine is 100 percent the favorite, but the game will have to be played in four months (the match is scheduled for March 26, — ed.), so it’s very hard to say now what Sweden will be like in the spring.
They messed up their World Cup qualification, not winning a single match in the group... It couldn’t be worse, they performed (four losses, two draws, and last place in group 'B', — ed.), but... Ukrainians should not look at the previous results of the Swedes. There’s no need to relax and underestimate the opponent because in the new year they might fix their gameplay problems, so to speak.
— Former 'Three Crowns' forward Martin Dahlin said, quote: “I think the head coach of the Swedish national team is quite satisfied. There were four difficult options, but I think he got the national team of Ukraine as his opponent”. End quote. In fact, the Swedish coach Graham Potter only confirmed Dahlin’s assumption, saying among other things that “It is not at home we will play with Ukraine, but we are lucky”.
Why do the Swedes have such a condescending attitude towards Ukraine? Where does their confidence that they will defeat us come from?
— With such statements, I think the Swedes are just trying to show that they, supposedly, are not afraid of Ukraine and believe in themselves. The Swedes are purely putting psychological pressure.
— Poland is set to play against Albania in the first round of the playoffs. In my opinion, the 'cadre' have nothing to complain about regarding the opponent, and your country’s national team is definitely the favorite in the matchup.
— A dangerous opponent, very much so. Not long ago, in the qualification for Euro 2020, Poland played against Albania. Away we lost to them (0:2), at home we narrowly won (1:0). I remember, during the game in Warsaw, the Albanians had many chances near our goal, they really got on our nerves...
In general, Albania has a very decent team, with a core formed by qualified players from Italian Serie A clubs (Hysaj from Lazio, Ismajli and Asllani from Torino, Djimsiti from Atalanta, Ramadani and Berisha from Lecce, — ed.).
Yes, Poland is the favorite, but our team doesn’t like, doesn’t know how to play as number one. Even with Malta, we struggled a lot in the final group stage qualification match (the Poles won 3:1 after trailing during the game, — ed.).
— In the decisive match for a place at the World Cup, it is quite possible we will expect a Ukraine vs. Poland confrontation. What should we expect from such a duel if it happens, who will snatch the ticket to the World Cup and fly to North America?
— Oh, this question has already been asked by your colleagues from Polish television. I believe, if Poland and Ukraine do play, the chances are absolutely equal — 50 to 50.
It is very important where the game will take place. I’m doubtful that your federation (UAF) will agree to organize a match in Poland, even though Ukrainians have been playing with us recently, both in Wrocław and Warsaw. And it is understandable [that UAF would not want to play Poland on its home territory]. It’s logical to deprive us of the advantage, I mean the fans.
If Poland had played against Ukraine eight to ten years ago, I would have favored the 'cadre', not because I’m Polish.
— Why is that?
— Then most of the Polish national team players were playing in European teams, they were starting the second half of the season in January-February, while in Ukraine, the championship after the winter break started in March. So one national team [Poland], its players, would be in shape, while the others [Ukrainians] would just be getting into the game after the winter break.
About ten years ago, the backbone of Ukraine was made up of players from Dynamo, Shakhtar, Dnipro. Almost all the guys from the top league teams, few from European ones, but now it’s the opposite — almost the entire national team, its players, are representatives of European clubs.
— Back then you had a very bright leader — Andriy Shevchenko, now you have a charismatic leader — Robert Lewandowski. Isn’t it an advantage to have a star of such caliber in the lineup?
— Robert will have his motivation, as this is his last chance to play for Poland in a big tournament. Lately, in Poland, he has been a bit criticized, saying he scores too little for the national team, but he has been playing at the highest level for so many years and now plays not for five or ten minutes, but mainly the whole match.
— Ukraine has hope that, perhaps, our star Mudryk will serve his suspension by the time of the 2026 World Cup playoffs. If Mykhailo returns to the team, will the scales tip in favor of the 'blue-yellow'?
— Mudryk lost a lot of time, sat without any game practice. Even if he is allowed to play in March, he will not be the same player he was at Shakhtar and Chelsea. Will Mudryk have enough time to catch up on his form? I don’t know...
He’s a great player, no doubt, but even without Mudryk, Ukraine has plenty of good wingers — Zubkov, Tsygankov. In the center, I like how your number six — Kalyuzhny — plays. He works very well on defense, disrupts.
What I regret the most is that, unfortunately, either Ukraine or Poland will definitely not go to the World Cup...
Victor Glukhiy