After the Executive Committee of the Ukrainian Football Association approved Rostyslav Rotan as the acting head coach of Ukraine's national team, he responded to several questions from the UFA press service.

— Mr. Rotsislav Petrovych, the national team of Ukraine — is unequivocally part of you, as you were its captain and one of its hundred members in history. What does this symbolic moment mean to you, transitioning from the status of a national team captain to that of its head coach?

— For me, it's truly an honor and pride — being entrusted with the national team of my country. First of all, I want to say: for me to be acting now against England, we must thank our soldiers. Who suffers more — that is them. We should not fear responsibility for this match because it's much harder for our soldiers on the front line than for us — preparing for a game and playing it. However, we understand that we will also defend the honor of our country, so we must approach this very responsibly.

— Is there a feeling that you are returning to your family, which has always been and remains the national team of Ukraine?

— Yes, indeed. I have always said, and many can confirm this, that from the very beginning of my career as a player in the national team, I was always delighted to join its ranks. So now for me it's an honor. I understand that in the upcoming match we need to defend the honor of all Ukraine.

— How do you perceive this new challenge in your coaching career? Especially since the first official game will take place immediately on a historic stadium and against the pioneers of football...

— I consider it simply as a challenge. England is also a team for which victory brings three points. There are no unbeatable teams in the world, we all — together with players and coaches — must understand that we can play against this opponent and achieve results too. We will count on quality football. The game will show everything.

— What is your opinion of the current state of England's national team?

— As it stands now, this is one of the best teams in the world, and the World Cup showed that they are developing correctly. This is quite a strong team that progresses, and for quality of play, perhaps ranks among the top 5.

— When do you plan to decide on players for the match against England?

— I think by around March 5-6 we will know all the footballers who will be called up and enter the reserve list. We will communicate with the future head coach, and I believe we will reach a conclusion by these dates.

— How will your contact with Serhiy Rebrov take place?

— Actually, from our conversation with UFA President Andriy Pavelko and then — with Serhiy Rebrov and team captain Andriy Yarmolenko everything started (smiling). That's how my involvement began. So I will be in touch with Serhiy Rebrov and before announcing the list of called-up players — we will definitely go through the names, both during training sessions and before the match against England. My task is to help the national team, and I am ready to put all my efforts into it. That's why I accepted the proposal to become the acting head coach.

— Who will be part of your coaching staff?

— Assistant Serhiy Krawchenko, fitness trainers Yevhen Barishnykov and Ivan Bashthovyi, goalkeeper coach Vitaliy Reva, analysts Yevhen Gres and Volodymyr Lazarenko.

— At the same time, you remain the head coach of Ukraine's youth national team. Who will be in charge of its actions during your absence, and will you maintain control over the team remotely in March?

— Yes, the youth team is also under our supervision now. We worked and prepared for the gathering together with Oleksandr Melaschenko, Vasyl Kardashev, Oleksiy Chystyakov. They will be in charge of this team now. To them will add goalkeeper coach Taras Lutsenko. In a few days we will hold a Zoom conference with everyone, go through the players who will be called up for the youth team gathering again. We are making adjustments and already have an idea about who will be called up for the upcoming matches of this team. But I would like to wait a little longer because there is still time, injuries may occur. I think we will also answer this question with a statement at the beginning of March.